NOAA to Cut 10% of Workforce, Threatening Lifesaving Services as Hurricane Season Nears, Amid DOGE Involvement
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The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is set to implement another round of job cuts, with plans to lay off more than 1,000 workers, which represents about 10% of its current workforce. This follows the elimination of nearly all new employees last month, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter. The Trump administration's mandate for these 'reductions in force' is part of a broader initiative to reduce the federal workforce, with NOAA's parent agency, the Department of Commerce, involved in the process.
The cuts are raising concerns about NOAA's ability to provide lifesaving services, including weather forecasting, storm warnings, climate monitoring, fisheries oversight, avalanche warnings, space weather alerts, and oil spill response. NOAA's mission to deliver these services is at risk, especially as hurricane and disaster season approaches. NOAA has already ceased some operations due to staffing shortages, such as the launching of weather balloons in Albany, New York, and Gray, Maine.
The impact of these layoffs is significant, with NOAA potentially losing 20% of its staff, which totals around 13,000 employees. This comes after 1,300 staff members resigned or were laid off recently. The cuts are part of an executive order by President Donald Trump, aimed at streamlining the federal bureaucracy, with involvement from Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Experts warn that these cuts could significantly hamper NOAA's capacity to respond effectively to natural disasters. Additionally, the reduction in NOAA's budget, which taxpayers fund at 6 cents per day, and cuts in research grants to universities, could further limit the U.S.'s ability to improve weather forecasts and monitor planetary changes. Hundreds have protested against DOGE's cuts outside NOAA's headquarters, highlighting the potential decline of the U.S. as a technological leader.
A hurricane modeling specialist fired from the National Weather Service said progress on forecast accuracy may "go backwards" if job cuts continue. https://t.co/D4zICz7wKF
Together with recent firings and resignations, the new cuts could hamper the National Weather Service’s ability to produce lifesaving forecasts, scientists say. https://t.co/pureg0FS9R
Weather forecasts will worsen and “people are going to start seeing this very quickly,” warned former NOAA chief scientist Craig McLean. https://t.co/PAjhr3PTdT
NOAA is preparing to lay off more than 1,000 workers as part of the Trump administration's mandate for agencies to prepare "reductions in force," according multiple sources familiar with the matter tell me
https://t.co/ea4Igdmke4
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National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the agency that monitors weather, will cut another 1,000 jobs
https://t.co/GPLITBXgjD https://t.co/a7i7jYktWP
