Update on Comprehensive Test Ban, & More from CRS
The Congressional Research Service has prepared an updated account of the status of the comprehensive nuclear test ban treaty (CTBT), which would prohibit explosive testing of nuclear weapons.
“As of August 2016, 183 states had signed the CTBT and 164, including Russia, had ratified it. However, entry into force requires ratification by 44 states specified in the treaty, of which 41 had signed the treaty and 36 had ratified.” The U.S. has not ratified it.
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee will hold a hearing on the CTBT tomorrow, September 7.
See Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty: Background and Current Developments, September 1, 2016.
Other new and updated products from the Congressional Research Service include the following.
Climate Change: Frequently Asked Questions about the 2015 Paris Agreement, September 1, 2016
U.S. Textile Manufacturing and the Proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, September 1, 2016
Comparing DHS Component Funding, FY2017: Fact Sheet, September 2, 2016
OPM Announces Premium Increase in the Federal Long-Term Care Insurance Program, CRS Insight, September 1, 2016
The European Union’s Small Business Act: A Different Approach, September 1, 2016
Zika Response Funding: Request and Congressional Action, updated September 1, 2016
Yesterday, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency proposed revoking its 2009 “endangerment finding” that greenhouse gases pose a substantial threat to the public. The Federation of American Scientists stands in strong opposition.
Modernizing ClinicalTrials.gov will empower patients, oncologists, and others to better understand what trials are available, where they are available, and their up-to-date eligibility criteria, using standardized search categories to make them more easily discoverable.
The Federation of American Scientists supports H.R. 4420, the Cool Corridors Act of 2025, which would reauthorize the Healthy Streets program through 2030 and seeks to increase green and other shade infrastructure in high-heat areas.
The current lack of public trust in AI risks inhibiting innovation and adoption of AI systems, meaning new methods will not be discovered and new benefits won’t be felt. A failure to uphold high standards in the technology we deploy will also place our nation at a strategic disadvantage compared to our competitors.