Climate Adaptation at the Federal Level

This fact sheet from the Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) examines federal climate change adaptation and resiliency efforts in the United States as of January 2014. It details the economic impacts of extreme weather in 2012, analyzes legislative proposals and executive orders aimed at increasing national resilience, and reviews the specific adaptation plans developed by various federal agencies.

• The United States experienced significant extreme weather in 2012, which was the hottest year on record since 1895. This included the most severe drought since the 1930s, affecting 22 states and causing $30 billion in costs and 123 deaths. In total, NOAA recorded 11 "Billion-Dollar Weather/Climate Disasters" in 2012, resulting in $115 billion in damages.
• The Disaster Relief Appropriations Act of 2013 provided $50.7 billion for Hurricane Sandy recovery and included specific authorizations for adaptation. This included up to $5.38 billion for the Federal Transit Administration to reduce future disaster risk and $2.9 billion for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to reduce future flood risk and support coastal ecosystem sustainability.
• Two major legislative proposals were introduced in 2013 to formalize federal adaptation: the SAFE Act (S. 1202), which sought to protect natural resources through a National Fish, Wildlife and Plants Climate Adaptation Strategy, and the STRONG Act (S. 904 and H.R. 2322), which proposed a National Extreme Weather Resilience Plan to minimize economic and social costs.

APA

Environmental and Energy Study Institute (2014). Climate Adaptation at the Federal Level. https://www.eesi.org/files/FactSheet_federal_adaptation_011614.pdf

Chicago

Environmental and Energy Study Institute. Climate Adaptation at the Federal Level. 2014. https://www.eesi.org/files/FactSheet_federal_adaptation_011614.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Environmental and Energy Study Institute |title=Climate Adaptation at the Federal Level |date=January 2014 |url=https://www.eesi.org/files/FactSheet_federal_adaptation_011614.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{environmentalandenergystudyinstitute2014climate, author = {{Environmental and Energy Study Institute}}, title = {{Climate Adaptation at the Federal Level}}, institution = {Environmental and Energy Study Institute}, year = {2014}, month = jan, url = {https://www.eesi.org/files/FactSheet_federal_adaptation_011614.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }