The full text of the bill isn't yet available, and McNerney’s office didn’t immediately respond to inquiries from MIT Technology Review. But the primary aims would include improving our basic understanding of stratospheric chemistry, and assessing the potential effects and risks of geoengineering.

The legislation would also grant NOAA oversight authority to review and report on experiments proposed by other research groups, says Kelly Wanser, an advisor on geoengineering research efforts and executive director at SilverLining, who consulted with McNerney’s office on details in the bill.

A growing number of academic research groups are exploring various ways to cool the planet as the threat of climate change grows, including injecting reflective particles into the stratosphere or spraying salt water into the sky to brighten coastal clouds.

But there are concerns that using such tools could have dangerous environmental side effects, and that even suggesting them as solutions could ease pressure to cut the greenhouse-gas emissions driving climate change.

In a statement, McNerney asserted that the federal government should take the lead in this controversial field, noting that other research efforts are already moving forward.

A team of Harvard researchers has been preparing to conduct one of the first outdoor experiments related to geoengineering, by launching a balloon that would spray a small quantity of particles into the stratosphere. At least in part because there isn’t a US-government-funded research program in place, Harvard took the unusual step of creating its own external advisory committee to ensure that the researchers work to limit environmental risks, seek outside input, and operate in a transparent way.