Extreme Heat

To address challenges posed by increased extreme heat, USAID should mobilize finance through environmental impact bonds focused on scaling extreme heat adaptation solutions.

FAS has been a leading voice for action on this topic, and has developed a compendium of 150+ heat-related federal policy recommendations. 

As temperatures rise, so do energy bills. Energy justice should be a federal priority as the extreme heat crisis exposes energy security gaps.

OSHA’s proposed heat rule aims to protect approximately 36 million workers in indoor and outdoor settings from heat-related illnesses and fatalities. Its success hinges on substantial investments to bridge the gap between policy and practice.

As people wait for this catastrophic grid failure to be remedied, much of southeast Texas, which includes Houston, is enduring dangerous, extreme heat with no air conditioning amid an ongoing heatwave.

The federal government plays a critical role in scaling up heat resilience interventions through research and development, regulations, standards, guidance, funding sources, and other policy levers. But what are the transformational policy opportunities for action?

FAS and our partner organizations welcome the opportunity to meet with the Department of Education to discuss recommendations as we enter another season of unprecedented heat.

Comprehensive heat safety standards are essential to mitigate the impacts of climate change on farmworkers and ensure the sustainability and resilience of agricultural operations.

We’ve created a tool to monitor the progress of federal actions on extreme heat, enhance accountability, and to allow stakeholders to stay informed on the evolving state of U.S. climate-change resilience.

In the absence of a national strategy to address the compounding impacts of extreme heat, states, counties, and cities have had to take on the responsibility of addressing the reality of extreme heat in their communities with limited resources.

Through the broad uptake and implementation of the Heat Action Planning framework by key agencies and offices, the federal government will enable a more heat-prepared nation.

Global episodes of extreme heat intensify water shortages caused by extended drought and overpumping. Creating actionable solutions to the challenges of a warming planet requires cooperation across all water consumers.

To better incorporate extreme heat and people-centered disasters into U.S. emergency management, Congress and federal agencies should take several interrelated actions.

The undercounting of deaths related to extreme heat and other people-centered disasters — like extreme cold and smoke waves — hinders the political and public drive to address the problem.

The U.S. must urgently reform its disaster assistance policies to incorporate extreme heat through an amendment to the Stafford Act.

The incoming administration should undertake a multi-agency effort to further develop the science and quantify the benefits of urban forests today and into the future.

The federal government must maximize existing funds to mitigate heat stress and ensure the equitable distribution of these resources to the most vulnerable households.

The escalating frequency and intensity of extreme heat events, exacerbated by climate change, pose a significant and growing threat to public health. By leveraging funding mechanisms, incentives, and requirements, HHS can strengthen health system preparedness.

In a blackout, access to critical services like telecommunications, transportation, and medical assistance is also compromised, which only intensifies and compounds the urgency for coordinated response efforts.

An energy-efficient workplace cooling transformation is needed to ensure businesses have the support required to comply with existing state heat rules and upcoming federal workplace heat prevention requirements.

To protect the health and well-being of the nation’s children, the federal government must facilitate efforts to collect the data required to drive extreme heat mitigation and adaptive capacity in the classroom.

To spur demand and send a strong signal for beneficial private sector innovation and scale, the federal government can lead by example to drive the market for products and services that build heat resilience.

Better data on working AC infrastructure in American homes would improve how the federal government and its state and local partners target local social services and interventions during extreme heat events.

The White House Climate Policy Office should establish a National Moonshot to Combat Extreme Heat, an all-of-government program to accelerate federal efforts to reduce heat risk.

Without a federal heat stress standard, there is no way to ensure the adoption of heat stress prevention strategies to protect vulnerable workers.

It is imperative for local government officials and city planners to understand who is most vulnerable to the impacts of extreme heat and how temperatures vary throughout a city to develop effective heat mitigation and response strategies.

The federal government needs to shift as much of its infrastructure investments as possible away from dark and impervious surfaces and toward cool and pervious “smart surfaces.”

Extreme heat kills more people on average every year than any other extreme weather event. A major operational barrier to extreme heat response planning is a lack of data-driven decision-making resources, such as impact-based forecasts.

FAS introduces a cohort of over 20 experts from our Extreme Heat Policy Challenge to develop high-impact policy recommendations that comprehensively address the extreme heat crisis.

Extreme heat is the number one weather-related killer of Americans, yet receives minimal targeted federal support and dedicated funding for planning, mitigation, and recovery.