Current Issues
Transportation Safety
Rail Safety Legislation
Rail safety legislation is advancing in the Senate on a bipartisan basis. The Railway Safety Act of 2023 is sponsored primarily by two Ohio Senators–Sherrod Brown ...
_________________________
Disasters Risk & Response
Disasters Results - 2022
NOAA announced (January 10) that the U.S. experienced 18 separate weather and climate-related events during 2022, each costing at least $1 billion. These events ...
_________________________
Water Supply and Safety
Colorado River Allocation Reductions
The Department of the Interior announced (May 22) an agreement among Lower Colorado River Basin states to implement further water use reductions that totals 3 million acre-feet through the end of 2026. Half of the water savings ...
_________________________
Research & Analysis
A Legal Guide to Bold Climate Action from President Biden
Center for Biological Diversity
This report (February 2022) provides a concept of the legal basis for measures to address climate change using the emergency powers of the President.
_________________________
National Emergency Powers
Congressional Research Service
This CRS report (February 2021) summarizes the basis for, and specifics of, Presidential emergency powers.
_________________________
U.S. coastline to see up to a foot of sea level rise by 2050
NOAA
This report (February 2022) of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) estimates that the United States could see a rise in sea levels within 30 years (by 2050), as it has already seen occur over the previous 100 years.
_________________________
2022 Bridge Report
American Road and Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA)
This ARTBA report provides a current summary of bridge conditions in the United States. Among the key data points are that more than 43,500 bridges are rated in poor condition and classified as “structurally deficient,” and that 78,800 bridges should be replaced.
_________________________
Are federal disaster policies making the harmful impacts of climate change even worse?
Brookings
This article argues that federal spending on disasters is weighted too heavily in favor of recovery over preventing future disasters (i.e., "resilience"), and that policy reforms are needed to strike a more appropriate balance between response/recovery and resilience.
_________________________
The Disaster Recovery Reform Act of 2018: Implementation Updates for Select Provisions
Congressional Research Service
This GAO report describes disaster policy changes implemented since 2018 reform legislation and identifies other potential areas for the Congress to consider.
_________________________
Climate Change: How Do We Know
NASA
Climate Science Special Report
Cross-US Federal Government
This is the fourth National Climate Assessment required under the Global Change Research Act of 1990. The fifth assessment is currently under development (expected in 2023). The assessments detail current scientific evidence on the causes and impacts of climate change.
_________________________
U.S. Global Change Research Program
GlobalChange.gov
This is the website of the U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP), which coordinates federal research and investments in understanding the forces shaping the global environment, both human and natural, and the impacts.
_________________________
Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
This is the Summary for Policymakers of the Sixth Assessment Report on climate change issued by the United Nation's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
_________________________
American Pandemic Preparedness: Transforming Our Capabilities
White House - Office of Science & Technology and Office of National Security Affairs
This is a White House plan on U.S. preparation for future pandemics (September 2021).
_________________________
Plan to Preserve Global Forests: Critical Carbon Sinks
The White House
This plan (November 2021) sets forth the Biden Administration's strategy for helping to protect global forests for the primary purpose of meeting carbon reduction goals.
_________________________
Key Federal Programs
National Flood Insurance Fund [FEMA - DHS]
This Year (FY 22)
Budget Proposal (FY 23)
Enacted (FY 23)
% Change
$0
$0
---
---
Supplementals (FY 21-22)
$700,000,000
Dam Safety Program grants [FEMA - DHS]
This Year (FY 22)
Budget Proposal (FY 23)
Enacted (FY 23)
% Change
$0
$0
---
---
Supplementals (FY 21-22)
$733,000,000
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB)
This Year (FY 22)
Budget Proposal (FY 23)
Enacted (FY 23)
% Change
$121,400,000
$129,300,000
---
---
Supplementals (FY 21-22)
$0
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration [Commerce - NOAA]
This Year (FY 22)
Budget Proposal (FY 23)
Enacted (FY 23)
% Change
$5,877,349,000
$6,884,121,000
---
---
Supplementals (FY 21-22)
$3,308,039,000
Federal Assistance [FEMA - DHS]
This Year (FY 22)
Budget Proposal (FY 23)
Enacted (FY 23)
% Change
$3,668,199,000
$3,530,489,000
---
---
Supplementals (FY 21-22)
$660,000,000
Disaster Relief Fund [FEMA - DHS]
This Year (FY 22)
Budget Proposal (FY 23)
Enacted (FY 23)
% Change
$18,799,000,000
$19,740,000,000
---
---
Supplementals (FY 21-22)
$50,200,000,000
Wildfire Management/Supression [Interior]
This Year (FY 22)
Budget Proposal (FY 23)
Enacted (FY 23)
% Change
$1,356,097,000
$1,800,917,000
---
---
Supplementals (FY 21-22)
$100,000,000
Inland Oil Spill Program [EPA]
This Year (FY 22)
Budget Proposal (FY 23)
Enacted (FY 23)
% Change
$20,626,000
$26,502,000
---
---
Supplementals (FY 21-22)
$0
Wildland Fire Management [Agriculture - Forest Service]
This Year (FY 22)
Budget Proposal (FY 23)
Enacted (FY 23)
% Change
$4,125,106,000
$4,888,659,000
---
---
Supplementals (FY 21-22)
$552,200,000
