Insurers have warned that mass firings at US science agencies could threaten the critical weather and geospatial data that the industry uses to manage natural disaster risks and potentially raise prices for consumers.
The Reinsurance Association of America, a trade group, is lobbying US commerce secretary Howard Lutnick to preserve data collection at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, after the department said that it would fire more than 1,000 staff.
The agency oversees the National Weather Service and monitors the vast oceanic and atmospheric conditions of the nation, including “Hurricane Hunter” jets which provide real-time storm data critical to accurate forecasts.