The Federation of American Scientists supports H.Res. 446, which would recognize July 3rd through July 10th as “National Extreme Heat Awareness Week”. 

The resolution is timely, as the majority of heat-related illness and death in the United States occurs from May to September. If enacted, H.Res. 446 would raise awareness about the dangers of extreme heat, enabling individuals and communities to take action to better protect themselves this year and for years to come.

“Extreme heat is one of the leading causes of weather-related mortality and a growing economic risk,” said Grace Wickerson, Senior Manager for Climate and Health at the Federation of American Scientists. “We applaud Rep. Lawler and Rep. Stanton’s efforts to raise awareness of the threat of extreme heat with this resolution and the launch of the new Extreme Heat Caucus.”

The Federation of American Scientists supports H.R. 3738 of the 119th Congress, titled the “Heat Management Assistance Grant Act of 2025.”

The Heat Management Assistance Grant Act of 2025 creates the Heat Management Assistance Grant (HMAG) Program, a quick release of Federal Emergency Management Agency grants to state, local, tribal, and territorial governments for managing heat events that could become major disasters. This resourcing can be used for responses to extreme heat events, including supplies, personnel, and public assistance. HMAG is modeled after the Fire Management Assistance Grant program, which similarly deploys quick funding to activities that prevent wildfires from becoming major disaster events. The bill also creates a definition for an extreme heat event, which informs subnational leaders on when they can ask for assistance.

“Heat emergencies, such as the 2021 Pacific Northwest Heat Dome and 2024 power outage following Hurricane Beryl in Texas, demonstrate a critical need for government assistance for heat-affected communities. Yet to date, there has been no federal pathway for rapidly resourcing heat response,” said Grace Wickerson, Senior Manager for Climate and Health at the Federation of American Scientists. “The Heat Management Assistance Grant Act of 2025 is a critical step in the right direction to unlock the resources needed to save lives, and aligns with key recommendations from our 2025 Heat Policy Agenda.”

The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) launches its annual assessment of the state of armaments, disarmament and international security

Washington, D.C. – June 16, 2025 – Nuclear weapons researchers at the Federation of American Scientists (FAS) contributed to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI)’s annual Yearbook, released today. Key findings of SIPRI Yearbook 2025 are that a dangerous new nuclear arms race is emerging at a time when arms control regimes are severely weakened.

“The era of reductions in the number of nuclear weapons in the world, which had lasted since the end of the cold war, is coming to an end,” said Hans M. Kristensen, Associate Senior Fellow with SIPRI’s Weapons of Mass Destruction Programme and Director of the Nuclear Information Project at the Federation of American Scientists (FAS). “Instead, we see a clear trend of growing nuclear arsenals, sharpened nuclear rhetoric and the abandonment of arms control agreements.”

World’s nuclear arsenals being enlarged and upgraded  

Nearly all of the nine nuclear-armed states—the United States, Russia, the United Kingdom, France, China, India, Pakistan, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea) and Israel—continued intensive nuclear modernization programmes in 2024, upgrading existing  weapons and adding newer versions. 

Of the total global inventory of an estimated 12,241 warheads in January 2025, about 9614 were in military stockpiles for potential use (see the table below). An estimated 3912 of those warheads were deployed with missiles and aircraft and the rest were in central storage. Around 2100 of the deployed warheads were kept in a state of high operational alert on ballistic missiles. Nearly all of these warheads belonged to Russia or the USA, but China may now keep some warheads on missiles during peacetime. 

Since the end of the cold war, the gradual dismantlement of retired warheads by Russia and the USA has normally outstripped the deployment of new warheads, resulting in an overall year-on year decrease in the global inventory of nuclear weapons. This trend is likely to be reversed in the coming years, as the pace of dismantlement is slowing, while the deployment of new nuclear weapons is accelerating. 

Russia and the USA together possess around 90 per cent of all nuclear weapons. The sizes of their respective military stockpiles (i.e. useable warheads) seem to have stayed relatively stable in 2024 but both states are implementing extensive modernization programmes that could increase the size and diversity of their arsenals in the future. If no new agreement is reached to cap their stockpiles, the number of warheads they deploy on strategic missiles seems likely to increase after the bilateral 2010 Treaty on Measures for the Further Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms (New START) expires in February 2026. 

The USA’s comprehensive nuclear modernization programme is progressing but in 2024 faced planning and funding challenges that could delay and significantly increase the cost of the new strategic arsenal. Moreover, the addition of new non-strategic nuclear weapons to the US arsenal will place further stress on the modernization programme. 

Russia’s nuclear modernization programme is also facing challenges that in 2024 included a test  failure and the further delay of the new Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) and slower  than expected upgrades of other systems. Furthermore, an increase in Russia’s non-strategic nuclear warheads predicted by the USA in 2020 has so far not materialized. 

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ABOUT FAS

The Federation of American Scientists (FAS) works to advance progress on a broad suite of contemporary issues where science, technology, and innovation policy can deliver transformative impact, and seeks to ensure that scientific and technical expertise have a seat at the policymaking table. Established in 1945 by scientists in response to the atomic bomb, FAS continues to bring scientific rigor and analysis to address contemporary challenges. More information about FAS work at fas.org.

New initiative brings nine experts with federal government experience to work with the FAS and Tech & Society’s Beeck Center for Social Impact + Innovation, the Knight-Georgetown Institute, and the Institute for Technology Law & Policy

Wednesday, June 11, 2025—Today Georgetown University’s Tech & Society Initiative and the Federation of American Scientists (FAS) announce two new fellowship programs. These fellowships will bring technologists, lawyers, and policymakers with recent federal government experience to Georgetown University centers, where they will advance nonpartisan research and analysis in their areas of expertise and engage with students. 

Federal Alumni Fellows will work with Georgetown University’s Beeck Center for Social Impact + Innovation, the Knight-Georgetown Institute, and the Georgetown Law Institute for Technology Law & Policy to advance competition policy and antitrust enforcement in the tech sector, modernize consumer protection and competition for American innovation, and support expanded internet access for underserved communities. 

Digital Service Alumni Fellows will be housed under the University’s Tech & Society Initiative and will collaborate with FAS senior fellows to develop and execute “big wins” that significantly impact the science and tech policy landscape. In addition to providing a place and community for senior leaders to carry forward their work, both FAS and Tech & Society are providing support for digital service experts exiting federal service and continuing to grow the skills of the next generation of leaders in tech and policy.

“The launch of the Federal Alumni and Digital Service Fellowship Programs is a critical step in leveraging the departure of leaders and innovators from the federal government who helped modernize tech policy and digital service delivery,” said incoming Tech & Society Chair and Beeck Center Executive Director Lynn Overmann. “The fellows will bring deep experience that aligns with Tech & Society’s mission to foster innovative and interdisciplinary approaches at the intersection of tech, ethics, and governance. The fellows will elevate our centers’ collaborative work and share their expertise with Georgetown students, benefiting both our academic community and the broader field of science, data, effective service delivery, and technology communications. I am thrilled to welcome them to Georgetown University.”

“At FAS, we believe that talented and well-placed policy entrepreneurs are one of the most critical keys to unlocking innovation and solving our society’s most pressing challenges,” said Dr. Jedidah Isler, Chief Science Officer at the Federation of American Scientists.  “It’s why we launched our Senior Fellows Program earlier this year, and why we wanted to collaborate with Georgetown to supercharge our collective impact. Together with our FAS Senior Fellows, the Digital Services Alumni Fellows will tackle ambitious projects – from clean energy modernization to preserving the most essential federal datasets – that drive positive change. In an uncertain time, we are taking a bold step to lead the way and champion the current and future science, technology and innovation policy leaders we will need for tomorrow.”

Federal Alumni Fellows 

Erie Meyer most recently served as chief technologist of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). She was on the implementation team that launched the bureau and was a founding member of its Office of Technology and Innovation. Prior to that, she served as senior adviser for policy planning to former Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chair Lina Khan, as well as FTC chief technologist and technology adviser to former FTC Commissioner Rohit Chopra. Before working at the FTC, Meyer launched the U.S. Digital Service (USDS) in the White House, served as senior director for Code for America, and was a senior adviser to the White House chief technology officer. She is a recipient of the Harvard Kennedy School’s Joan Shorenstein fellowship and received a bachelor’s degree in journalism from American University. Meyer will be placed at the Georgetown Law Institute for Technology Law & Policy.

Stephanie Nguyen most recently served as chief technologist of the FTC. She spearheaded and launched the agency’s first Office of Technology with senior technologist experts to strengthen and support enforcement matters. Prior to her tenure at the FTC, Nguyen worked at the USDS in the White House, where she built and deployed products and services to millions of people across the Department of Education, Department of State, Health and Human Services, and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. She previously was a research scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Media Lab, a researcher at Consumer Reports, and a Gleitsman scholar at the Center for Public Leadership. She received a Master in Public Policy from the Harvard Kennedy School and a bachelor’s degree in Digital Media Theory and Design from the University of Virginia. Nguyen will be placed at the Georgetown Law Institute for Technology Law & Policy.

Reed Showalter most recently served as senior policy adviser on the National Economic Council. Showalter has broad expertise in competition law, previously serving at the Department of Justice as counsel for antitrust in the Office of Legislative Affairs and as an attorney adviser in the Antitrust Division. He has also worked as an antitrust attorney at the FTC, an associate at the Kanter Law Group, and as a member of the Digital Markets Investigation in the House of Representatives. He received a J.D. from Columbia Law School and a B.A. in International Politics from New York University. Showalter will be placed at the Knight-Georgetown Institute.

Stephanie Weiner most recently served as chief counsel of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration in the Department of Commerce. She has held senior positions in private industry, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), and the Department of Energy. She previously served as senior legal adviser to former FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler, where she oversaw all FCC matters relating to broadband competition and deployment. She received her law degree, magna cum laude, from Northwestern University School of Law, her master’s degree in public policy from the University of Chicago, and her bachelor’s degree from Brown University. Weiner will be placed at the Georgetown Law Institute for Technology Law & Policy.

Digital Service Alumni Fellows

Thushan Amarasiriwardena is an Emmy award-winning product leader focused on artificial intelligence (AI) and public impact. He led Google’s earliest efforts to bring large language models into production to power the Google Assistant; this project grew into the foundations of Gemini. Most recently, he served in the White House’s USDS, driving AI products in federal agencies like the IRS, following the Biden-era AI executive order. Previously, he co-founded Launchpad Toys, a Y Combinator and venture backed startup acquired by Google. His apps were recognized by the New York Times and Apple as one of the top iPad Apps.  Amarasiriwardena began his career as a journalist at The Boston Globe.

Luke Farrell is a public interest technology and policy executive. He currently serves as a fellow at FAS and as executive director for strategic innovation at the College Board. Most recently, Farrell served as senior adviser for technology and delivery on the White House Domestic Policy Council, where he worked to improve the delivery of core safety net benefits and health care for millions of Americans. At the USDS, he built and led rapid-response technology teams that mitigated nationwide supply chain shocks, launched critical public websites, and ensured millions of Americans remained enrolled in Medicaid following the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency. Prior to government service, Farrell led crisis response and machine learning teams at Google.

Faith Savaiano is a public policy professional and consultant with expertise in technology, government innovation, and STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) workforce development. Most recently, she served as a digital services expert with the USDS, where she provided policy guidance and contributed to the implementation of workforce and skilling objectives in President Biden’s executive order on AI. Additionally, she served as a subject-matter expert on federal regulatory policies and issues related to the federal workforce, public-private partnerships, and technology policy. Previously, Savaiano was the associate director of social innovation at the Federation of American Scientists, where she helped launch and lead a fellowship program that has now placed more than 100 technical experts into government. Prior to that time, she has worked at a variety of advocacy organizations focused on STEM workforce and education issues and the U.S. Department of State.

Diego Núñez most recently served in the Biden-Harris administration’s White House Climate Policy Office as a senior policy adviser. In that role, he led major initiatives across the power and transportation sectors, focusing on advanced transmission technologies, grid modernization, nuclear power, critical minerals, and solutions to manage increased demand from data centers and AI. Núñez began his tenure in the White House as an Associate Staff Secretary. Before that, Núñez served at the Department of the Treasury in the Office of Recovery Programs, at Stanford University’s Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence, and on multiple political campaigns. 

Meron Yohannes is a fellow at FAS focused on innovation, inclusivity, and technology related to economic and national security policy. Most recently, she served as the senior policy adviser for the U.S. Secretary of Commerce, formulating policy decisions related to economic development, minority businesses, workforce development, disaster recovery, and entrepreneurship. Her purpose was to guide policy development and program design for several agencies, a portfolio worth over $5 billion in funding that benefits underserved, distressed, and rural communities. Previously, she was the housing, infrastructure, and technology policy analyst at the Bipartisan Policy Center, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank researching and developing recommendations on affordable housing, water infrastructure, AI implications for the U.S. workforce, and evidence-based policymaking.

Participating Organizations: 

Beeck Center for Social Impact + Innovation at Georgetown University: 

The Beeck Center for Social Impact + Innovation at Georgetown University connects government and the civic tech ecosystem to tackle problems that no one can solve alone, to create a people-centered, digitally-enabled government for all. An anchor of Georgetown University’s Tech & Society Initiative, the Beeck Center works alongside public, private, and nonprofit organizations to identify and establish human-centered solutions that help government services work better for everyone—especially the most vulnerable and underserved populations.

Federal of American Scientists: 

The Federation of American Scientists (FAS) works to advance progress on a broad suite of contemporary issues where science, technology, and innovation policy can deliver transformative impact, and seeks to ensure that scientific and technical expertise have a seat at the policymaking table. Established in 1945 by scientists in response to the atomic bomb, FAS continues to bring scientific rigor and analysis to address contemporary challenges. 

Institute for Technology Law & Policy at the Georgetown University Law Center:

The Tech Institute is a hub for policymakers, academics, advocates, and technologists to study and discuss how to center humans and the social good, using technology as a tool. With the leading academic program for law and technology in the United States, the institute trains the next generation of lawyers and lawmakers with deep expertise in technology law and policy, provides nonpartisan insights to policymakers on issues related to new and emerging technologies, and fosters interdisciplinary approaches to solving complex technology law and policy problems. 

Knight-Georgetown Institute: 

The Knight-Georgetown Institute (KGI) is dedicated to connecting independent research with technology policy and design. KGI serves as a central hub for the growing network of scholarship that seeks to shape how technology is used to produce, disseminate, and access information. KGI is designed to provide practical resources that policymakers, journalists, and private and public sector leaders can use to tackle information and technology issues in real time. Georgetown University and the Knight Foundation came together to launch the institute in 2024.

Tech & Society Initiative: 

The Tech & Society Initiative creates novel approaches for interdisciplinary collaboration, research, and understanding at the intersection of technology, ethics, and governance at Georgetown University. We bring together ten centers and programs at Georgetown that are deeply immersed in particular parts of the technology and society equation: ethics, privacy, national security, law, policy, governance, and data—and we are building connective tissue between them. We identify the points of connection between them, and then create opportunities for them to collaborate in tangible and productive ways. 

Media Contact

Jessica Yabsley
Director of Communications
jessica.yabsley@georgetown.edu

June 2, 2025 – The Federation of American Scientists (FAS) is excited to announce it has acquired MetroLab Network (MLN), bringing together two teams with a shared commitment to harnessing science, technology and innovation to drive impact in new ways in communities across the country.

“MetroLab launched ten years ago with a vision to bring technical expertise and breakthrough innovations from the lab into the civic and community space where their impact can be transformational,” FAS CEO Daniel Correa said. “Today, we are teaming up to realize a shared vision, matching the deep science and tech expertise at FAS with Metrolab’s leadership, expertise, and expansive network across civic and university actors. I can’t wait to work hand in hand with Kate and her team to build the next chapter together.” 

This move will provide FAS with reach across all levels of government, connecting people, ideas, and initiatives from local communities to federal policies and endeavors. Today’s announcement is the culmination of several months of collaboration and planning, and will bring scale and reach to the work both organizations have been building over the last several years.

“MetroLab has focused on community partnerships and catalytic innovation for a decade. This new chapter will enable that work to grow and scale,” MetroLab’s Kate Garman Burns, who will join FAS as a Director, said. “We work with universities and local governments to bring innovative policy solutions to communities – and that work complements what FAS has been doing at the federal level. I could not be more excited to see what we can do together.”

As part of a new policy team at FAS, MetroLab will bring several existing programs to FAS that will continue and evolve within FAS, including its Civic Innovation Challenge, Mobility Center of Excellence, Local Government R&D Agenda, and Data Governance Policy Guidance. MLN also brings along its impressive network of community partners, including 82 local governments and over 120 universities. In addition, MLN board member Tom Schenk is joining FAS’s board of directors – he was officially elected on May 13.

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MetroLab Network (MLN) drives positive impact in communities by empowering collaboration between two critical public institutions: local government and universities. We believe science and research can live and flourish in cities and their city halls – bringing innovation and solutions to the front door of communities. We believe transformative partnerships between these institutions are a necessary evolution to the innovation and scientific movement of tomorrow.  The challenges cities and counties face are complex, and to create transformative change we bring together an ecosystem of  research and doers.

The Federation of American Scientists (FAS) works to advance progress on a broad suite of contemporary issues where science, technology, and innovation policy can deliver transformative impact, and seeks to ensure that scientific and technical expertise have a seat at the policymaking table. Established in 1945 by scientists in response to the atomic bomb, FAS continues to bring scientific rigor and analysis to address national challenges. More information about FAS work at fas.org.

FAS shares the following formal comment in the Federal Register and asks that the scientific community, and the people across the nation who benefit from their research, to do the same.

The Federation of American Scientists opposes the proposed “Schedule Policy/Career” (“Schedule PC”) in present form because it rescinds civil servant employment protections, placing unnecessary and undesirable political pressure on highly specialized scientific and technical career professionals serving in government.

FAS encourages the Office of Personnel Management to rescind or substantially overhaul the Proposed Rule on Improving Performance, Accountability and Responsiveness in the Civil Service. We ask that OPM respond to the following comments and reflect how it will revise the Proposed Rule or abandon it.

New Employment Category is Unnecessary

Instead of creating a new employment category – the Schedule P/C for federal civil servants – the same goals can be accomplished by requiring agencies to regularly review and update critical elements in the performance appraisal system and their rating factors. Changing performance elements will have the impact of ensuring attention to accountability and responsiveness to policy without the ambiguity or determining assignment to the Schedule or the taxpayer expense of defending it.

The Administration is already taking this action by changing the performance appraisal system for the Senior Executive Service to make senior executives more responsive to Executive-branch priorities and policies. FAS advocates for updates to performance standards and rating factors appropriate for non-executives–based on the best available evidence–to achieve the intended accountability and responsiveness goals in this Proposed Rule. 

Proposed Rule Conflates Accountability with Administration

The Proposed Rule makes several errors in interpretation of the Civil Service Act of 1978, including the one potentially most detrimental to scientific enquiry, innovation, and exploration:

• The proposed rule is about accountability to the President and his/her  Administration policies, not about performance on the job and accountability to the Constitution. By conflating the two, Schedule P/C takes away individual appeal rights for anyone reassigned to this categorization rather than focusing on removing poor performers. An employee’s poor performance is more commonly related to a lack of quality, accuracy, and/or timeliness of their job tasks, according to the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board. As written, Schedule P/C also discourages dissent, evidence-based policymaking, performance management to understand and track results, and program evaluation to understand outcomes.

• The proposed rule newly defines Policy-Influencing Roles for merit-based civil servants, while underutilizing existing regulations for other Policy-Making roles like political appointees and those with excepted service employment. 
  
  • Newly designating “Policy-influencing” positions as Schedule P/C provides such a breadth of interpretation for federal agencies that it could encompass most federal jobs, which  currently rely on a non-partisan, merit based civil service and their associated civil service protections. Already, a Social Security Administration (SSA) leader has voiced the intent to designate nearly all SSA career employees as Schedule P/C. Furthermore, the lack of guidance to agencies in identifying “policy influencing” roles will create inconsistencies in its application across agencies and confusion in comparing similar occupations and their duties.
    
  • Moreover, the Proposed Rule deviates from the accepted definitions for “policy determining,” “policy advocating,” and “policy influencing” roles identified in the Civil Service Act of 1978, and assigned to political appointees and excepted service employment categories. If the proposed rule were limited to “policy determining” and “policy making”, most of these positions would already be part of the Senior Executive Service (SES). These federal employment Schedules already carry the requisite responsiveness and accountability to Administration policies and priorities needed to ensure alignment of federal programs with legislative and executive branch intent. 

Washington, D.C. – May 6, 2025 – The Federation of American Scientists (FAS) today released “Nuclear Notebook: Russian Nuclear Weapons 2025,” its authoritative annual survey of Russia’s nuclear weapons arsenal. The FAS Nuclear Notebook is considered the most reliable public source for information on global nuclear arsenals for all nine nuclear-armed states. FAS has played a critical role for almost 80 years to increase transparency and accountability over the world’s nuclear arsenals and to support policies that reduce the numbers and risks of their use.

This year’s report, published in the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists and by Taylor & Francis and available in full here, discusses the following takeaways:

• Russia currently maintains nearly 5,460 nuclear warheads, with an estimated 1,718 deployed. This represents a slight decrease in total warheads from previous years but still positions Russia as the world’s largest nuclear power alongside the United States.
• Russia continues to modernize its nuclear triad, replacing Soviet-era weapons with newer types, but modernization of ICBMs and strategic bombers has been slow. The country’s efforts to develop the advanced Sarmat (RS-28 or SS-29) ICBM and the next-generation strategic bomber, PAK DA, have faced delays and setbacks.
• The submarine-based nuclear force continues its modernization with Borei-class submarines replacing older types. A portion of Russian ballistic missile submarines are at sea at any given time on strategic deterrent patrols. Significant nuclear warhead and missile storage upgrades are underway at the Pacific and Northern fleet bases.
• Russia continues modernizing and emphasizing its nonstrategic  nuclear forces. This includes land- and sea-based dual-capable missiles and tactical aircraft. Despite modernization of launchers, the number of warheads assigned to those launchers has remained relatively stable. Russia held several high-profile exercises with its nonstrategic forces in 2024, and the authors describe upgrades to a suspected nuclear storage depot in Belarus.
• Russia has maintained its policy of nuclear deterrence, emphasizing the strategic importance of its nuclear arsenal in its military doctrine. Updates to public policy documents describe a broader range of scenarios for potential use of nuclear weapons but it is unknown to what extent this is reflected in changes to military plans.
  

FAS Nuclear Experts and Previous Issues of Nuclear Notebook

The FAS Nuclear Notebook, co-authored by Hans M. Kristensen, Matt Korda, Eliana Johns, and Mackenzie Knight, is published bi-monthly in the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. The first Nuclear Notebook was published in 1987. FAS, formed in 1945 by the scientists who developed the first U.S. nuclear weapon, has worked since to increase nuclear transparency, reduce nuclear risks, and advocate for responsible reductions of nuclear arsenal and their role.

This latest issue on Russia’s nuclear weapons comes after the release of Nuclear Notebook: Chinese Nuclear Weapons 2025 and will be followed in June by Nuclear Notebook: French Nuclear Weapons 2025. More research available at FAS’s Nuclear Information Project.


The Federation of American Scientists’ work on nuclear transparency would not be possible without generous support from the Carnegie Corporation of New York, the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust, the Jubitz Family Foundation, the New-Land Foundation, Ploughshares, the Prospect Hill Foundation, and individual donors.

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ABOUT FAS

The Federation of American Scientists (FAS) works to advance progress on a broad suite of contemporary issues where science, technology, and innovation policy can deliver transformative impact, and seeks to ensure that scientific and technical expertise have a seat at the policymaking table. Established in 1945 by scientists in response to the atomic bomb, FAS continues to bring scientific rigor and analysis to address contemporary challenges. More information about FAS work at fas.org.

The destruction and ill health caused by wildfires requires scientific and technological expertise as part of a cohesive social and environmental plan

Washington, D.C. – May 7, 2025 – With wildfire risk increasing and the potential for destruction along with it continues to grow nationwide, the Federation of American Scientists (FAS) today joins with other organizations to launch a new coalition, Partners in Wildfire Prevention. The coalition is committed to reducing the adverse effects of wildfires through prevention and preparedness.

“Wildfires are a national crisis – but they’re one we have the capacity to address,” said Dr. Jedidah Isler, Chief Science Officer of the Federation of American Scientists. “There’s a particularly powerful opportunity to harness the power of science and technology for smarter, more effective wildfire management. The Federation of American Scientists is proud to join with first responders, labor organizations, business leaders, wildfire preparedness organizations, and community interest groups through the Wildfire Prevention Coalition to advance actionable, evidence-based policy solutions that will make our communities, and our country, more prepared to handle the growing wildfire threat.”

Wildfire Prevention Coalition Aims

The Wildfire Prevention Coalition has four primary goals: elevating safety and prevention; deploying risk-mitigating technology infrastructure; providing prompt access to claims compensation; and implementing a balanced liability framework. Together, partner organizations in the coalition will work to support one or more of these goals. 

“FAS, and our partners in the Wildfire Prevention Coalition, see this as a pivotal time to take action given the​​ absence of a national, strategic plan to address the wildfire threat. We have been working in wildfire for several years, convening with a range of experts. We have produced an extensive library of policy memos for policymakers to evaluate and champion,” says Dr. Hannah Safford, Associate Director of Climate and Environment at FAS. “All of these memos are actionable ideas rooted in evidence-based solutions.”

Coalition partners include public safety, labor, and business sector groups, along with wildfire preparedness and community interest groups.

“To prepare for and prevent catastrophic wildfires, we must utilize and invest in cutting-edge science and technology. FAS is excited to bring our vital perspective to Partners in Wildfire Prevention, which recognizes the need for investment in advanced modeling, data, and technology focused squarely on prevention. The policy decisions made today should leverage innovation to ensure communities are prepared for wildfires in a changing landscape,” says James Campbell, Wildfire Policy Specialist at FAS.

FAS Wildfire Policy Work

FAS continues to work with scientists and subject matter experts to develop policy recommendations impacting physical landscapes and communities, public health and infrastructure, data and technology, and the workforce. Ongoing wildfire policy work can be found at the FAS website, here: https://fas.org/initiative/wildland-fire/.

ABOUT FAS

The Federation of American Scientists (FAS) works to advance progress on a broad suite of contemporary issues where science, technology, and innovation policy can deliver transformative impact, and seeks to ensure that scientific and technical expertise have a seat at the policymaking table. Established in 1945 by scientists in response to the atomic bomb, FAS continues to bring scientific rigor and analysis to address contemporary challenges. More information about FAS work at fas.org. Wildfire work can be found at: https://fas.org/initiative/wildland-fire/

The Federation of American Scientists supports the Senate version of the Fix Our Forests Act.

Uncontrolled wildfire is an intensifying national crisis. Just this year, wildfires have devastated communities around Los Angeles and affected states in all parts of the country, from Florida to Texas and Oklahoma to the Carolinas. To tackle this crisis, the House of Representatives in January passed H.R. 471, the Fix Our Forests Act, with large bipartisan margins. FAS applauds Senators Curtis, Hickenlooper, Padilla, and Sheehy for coming together to build on H.R. 471, resulting in an even stronger version of this legislation now introduced as a companion bill in the Senate.

“As FAS continues to emphasize, failing to address the root causes of devastating wildfires is a policy choice. And  it’s a choice we can no longer afford,” said Daniel Correa, Chief Executive Officer of the Federation of American Scientists. “Swift passage of the Fix Our Forests Act in the Senate would put us on track to better manage the entire wildfire lifecycle of prevention, suppression, and recovery, including through smart and systematic use of science and technology for decision support.”

FAS championed important provisions of the Fix Our Forests Act, ensuring that both the House and Senate versions of this legislation include essential, evidence-based reforms to improve fuel management and facilitate rapid uptake of innovative approaches to fire management. FAS particularly supports Sec. 102, which would create the Wildfire Intelligence Center – a hub to coordinate wildfire management across federal agencies and embed science, technology, and real-time data into decision making.

Other key provisions include:

• Sec. 117 – Utilizing livestock grazing for wildfire risk reduction, including fuels reduction and post-fire recovery. Livestock grazing is a proven strategy to reduce hazardous fuels and combat invasive species while partnering with local ranchers and farms.
• Sec. 131 – Defining federal prescribed fire activity. Confronting the wildfire crisis must include increased use of prescribed fire; this bill rightly prioritizes the use of prescribed fire in large, cross-boundary projects near wildland-urban interfaces, Tribal lands, high-risk fire zones, or critical habitats.
• Sec. 138 – Facilitating the responsible utilization of prescribed fire. Increased use of prescribed fire also includes ensuring that prescribed fire is monitored and safely extinguished.
• Sec. 201 – Creating the Community Wildfire Risk Reduction Program. Coordinating federal wildfire risk reduction efforts across federal agencies is necessary to enhance resilience in the built environment.
• Sec. 202 – Creating the Community Wildfire Defense Research Program. This section invests in science, research, and innovation related to managing wildfire in the built environment.
• Sec. 204 – Improving the Community Wildfire Defense Grant Program by expanding eligible grant projects to include structure retrofits, defensible space creation, infrastructure hardening, and deployment of wildfire technologies
• Sec. 301 – Establishing a partnership program for biochar demonstration projects. Biochar can enhance forest health, increase carbon sequestration, spur job creation, and build new markets. 50% of biochar feedstocks for demonstration projects carried out under this section are required to come from forest thinning or management on public lands.
• Sec. 302 – Implementing accurate reporting systems to measure hazardous fuels reduction.
• Sec. 303 – Creating a public-private wildfire technology deployment and demonstration partnership. This section will accelerate testing, implementation, and deployment of fire technologies through partnerships between government agencies and private, nonprofit, and academic entities.
• Sec. 401 – Establishing a wildland fire management casualty assistance program.

“The science is clear: tackling the wildfire crisis requires better forest management, increasing the use of prescribed fire, and investing in and deploying the next generation of wildfire technologies. The Fix Our Forests Act will get this urgently needed work done. Now is the time for the Senate to build on the bipartisan leadership demonstrated by the sponsors and pass this bill,” said James Campbell, Wildfire Policy Specialist at the Federation of American Scientists.

The Federation of American Scientists supports the National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology’s Final Report and the Recommendations contained within it.

Charting the Future of Biotechnology delivers 49 recommendations to foster the growth of the biotechnology and biomanufacturing sector within the U.S. bioeconomy. Implementing the recommendations outlined in this report will strengthen the U.S. bioeconomy by establishing a unified national strategy that fosters innovation in biotechnology, ensures our continued global competitiveness, and delivers significant economic and societal benefits to the nation.

FAS is particularly excited by these recommendations:

• 1.1a: Establishment of a National Biotechnology Coordination Office
• 2.2a-d: Economic levers to promote scale-up and innovations coming to market
• 2.4a: Biotechnology infrastructure and data to be classified as “critical infrastructure”
• 3.1a: Department of Defense to consult with stakeholders to define principles for ethical use of biotechnology
• 4.3a-c: Centers for Biotechnology
• 5.1a through 5.3b: Biotechnology workforce for the future
• 6.1a-e: Strengthen global U.S. biotechnology efforts through global policy 

These recommendations have the potential to address key challenges within the U.S. bioeconomy, including the lack of a coordinated strategy, commercialization barriers, workforce shortages, and supply chain vulnerabilities.

“FAS applauds the NSCEB’s deep investigation of unlocking U.S.-led biotechnology in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. We look forward to bringing FAS’s unique and effective approach of policy entrepreneurship to realize the promise of these capabilities while reducing the risks of misuse,” said Yong-Bee Lim, Associate Director of Global Risk at the Federation of American Scientists.

“The National Commission on Emerging Biotechnology report developed 50 recommendations to address the major challenges currently facing the U.S. bioeconomy: a lack of strategy and coordination across the federal government, difficulties in scaling biotechnology innovations, and the need for a trained workforce for the future. These recommendations aim to de-risk the biotechnology sector, thereby enabling private sector investment in critical biotechnology and biomanufacturing initiatives. Ultimately, these efforts will foster continued growth, secure the U.S. bioeconomy, and lead to the creation of new jobs and further economic growth.”” said Nazish Jeffery, Bioeconomy Policy Manager at the Federation of American Scientists. “It will be important to continue advocating, refining, and adding additional recommendations in order to realize the full value that this report offers.”

For more information contact Nazish Jeffery, FAS Bioeconomy Policy Manager, njeffery@fas.org.

The Federation of American Scientists supports The Heating and Cooling Relief Act of 2025. With summer right around the corner, it is more important than ever to ensure life-saving home cooling is affordable to all Americans.

The Heating and Cooling Relief Act of 2025 helps mitigate the negative health impacts of extreme heat through necessary modernizations of the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). The bill includes key provisions of the 2025 Heat Policy Agenda, including ensuring LIHEAP is reauthorized at a level to meet the demand from all eligible households, expanding emergency assistance authorities and funding to cover heating and cooling support during extreme temperature events, preventing energy shutoffs for LIHEAP beneficiaries, increasing the share of funding that can go towards preventative weatherization measures, and requiring the following studies:

• A study on safe residential temperature standards for federally assisted housing in consultation with the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and strategies to keep housing within safe temperature ranges.
• A study from State Energy Offices that receive federal funds on pathways to retrofit the low-income housing stock to ensure it is adapted to rising temperatures, such as through efficient cooling systems and passive cooling.

“Access to affordable energy is crucial for health security, especially during extreme temperatures. Yet 1 in 6 households can’t afford their energy bills, and the costs of  heating and cooling homes are continuing to climb,” says Grace Wickerson, Senior Manager, Climate and Health. “The Federation of American Scientists is proud to support the Heating and Cooling Relief Act of 2025 bill to bring down the cost of energy for Americans through immediate relief as well as forward-thinking investments in resilience.”

The Federation of American Scientists supports the Cool Roof Product Rebate Act of 2025. 

The Cool Roof Product Rebate Act of 2025 would direct the Secretary of Energy to establish a federal rebate program for the purchase and installation of cool roofs. Cool roofs can help households lower energy costs, prevent the negative health impacts of high indoor temperatures, and improve community resiliency by reducing the strain on the grid. This legislation aligns with key recommendations from the FAS 2025 Heat Policy Agenda to enhance the resilience of housing to extreme heat.

“Housing and energy are key determinants of health, and both are becoming increasingly unaffordable to every day Americans” said Grace Wickerson, Senior Manager for Climate and Health at the Federation of American Scientists. “Rebates for cool roofs are smart ways to bring these critical technologies within reach for lower-income households, and allow them to lower their energy bills while bolstering the safety and resilience of their homes.”