About 95% of the agency’s staff is furloughed, and all current investigations have been suspended, said Thomas Zoeller, CSB’s senior advisor. The few remaining staffers are monitoring situations and would decide on what kind of deployment the agency could undertake if a serious incident occurs during the shutdown, he said.

“We’re just very hopeful that a resolution will be quickly made, and we can resume operations as soon as possible,” Mr. Zoeller said.

CSB’s annual budget has never exceeded $12 million, which is one-tenth of that of the National Transportation Safety Board, which investigates transportation accidents and on which CSB is modeled.

Despite its small budget, CSB has investigated some 130 accidents and produced more than 90 accident reports and some 40 safety videos based on specific accidents. It has influenced industrial and chemical safety in the U.S. and across the world through its recommendations, according to industrial accident experts contacted by C&EN.

For instance, the U.K. Health & Safety Executive (HSE) that regulates industry in Britain uses insights and findings from CSB investigations to back up its regulations, says Ian Whewell, former HSE director of offshore safety.

“We all must learn the lessons of the past,” he says. “Without CSB carrying out independent, nonjudgmental investigations, U.S. chemical and petrochemical industries would be without one of the key tools they need to reduce the risk of catastrophic accidents.”

Poje agrees.

“Trump’s proposal is unwise,” he states. “The next major incident in 2017 will prompt a catalytic change in thinking about CSB. Its budget is tiny, far less than the property loss from a single industry accident.”

He adds, “CSB is a bargain for helping protect the homeland, save lives, and better ensure continuity of businesses.”