1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Background Ozone Research Act . 2. Findings Congress finds the following: (1) Ground-level ozone, a type of tropospheric ozone, is created when nitrogen oxides (NOX) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), emitted by motor vehicles, power plants, other industrial processes, or natural processes like wildfires, chemically react in the presence of ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the Sun. (2) Ground-level ozone present in a given area may be attributed to either local, human produced sources or sources that are not local and human produced. (3) United States background ozone (hereafter referred to as background ozone ) is the ground-level ozone that would exist in the absence of any human-produced emissions inside the United States. (4) Ground level ozone is considered a harmful pollutant due to its effects on people and the environment and is the main component of smog. (5) The American Thoracic Society estimated the annual excess mortality due to ground-level ozone in the United States at 3,880 individuals as of 2017. (6) Ground-level ozone has been linked to plant damages and thus diminished crop yields. (7) A number of cities and regions in the United States remain out of compliance with Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for ground-level ozone. (8) Further research would help to understand background ozone trends and how to mitigate background ozone. 3. Study on background ozone research needs (a) In general Not later than 60 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency shall seek to enter an agreement with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (referred to in this Act as the National Academies ) under which the National Academies shall conduct a study on the current and future research needs regarding background ozone. The study shall— (1) propose a framework of standard terms and definitions for types of non-local ground level ozone,