Commerce Secretary Grilled on NOAA Staffing Shortages

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick defended proposed budget cuts to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and disputed whether there are staff shortages at the National Weather Service in testimony before the Senate and House Appropriations Committees last week.

The Trump administration has asked Congress to cut NOAA’s budget by 28% for fiscal year 2026. While the full details of the proposal are not yet public, documentation released so far suggests the administration is seeking to disband the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research while prioritizing funding for NWS.

NWS’s staffing was a large concern for committee members from both parties in the House and Senate.

House Commerce, Justice, Science Appropriations Subcommittee Chair Hal Rogers (R-KY), whose state has been hit hard with recent floods and tornadoes, asked about steps being taken to “ensure NOAA’s local weather forecast offices have the resources, the technology, and staffing to issue timely, accurate warnings and protect lives in high-risk communities.” He raised concerns that the NWS office in Jackson, Kentucky, currently has multiple vacancies.

CJS Subcommittee Ranking Member Grace Meng (D-NY) said that “hundreds of meteorologists and other weather service employees were fired or felt pressured to sign up for Elon Musk’s deferred resignation program.” As a result of this, she said that NWS has been “scrambling to keep a minimum staff at weather forecast offices around the country.”

Lutnick asserted at both hearings that NWS is at “full capacity,” despite reporting from CNN that NWS lost more than 560 employees from a combination of layoffs and early retirements, and that forecast offices are reporting that they will have to transition to less-than-24/7 operations without additional staffing.

Senate CJS Subcommittee Chair Jerry Moran (R-KS) asked for Lutnick’s help in lifting the hiring freeze on the NWS, “particularly in Kansas, where it’s now tornado season.” Soon after the hearing, Moran and Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) introduced legislation to exempt NWS meteorologists from the hiring freeze.

CJS Subcommittee Ranking Member Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) mentioned that NWS has temporarily lifted the freeze for meteorologists and specialists for its forecast offices and is planning to rehire around 125 meteorologists and specialists for hurricane season, which he said he took as a sign that the department had “made a huge mistake.”

When pressed to explain vacancies at regional forecasting offices, Lutnick described plans to implement a system that enables meteorologists to “forecast the weather from central locations and back up each other.”

Lutnick said outdated technology is being used at meteorology offices, such as “green screens and hard drives.” He said NWS should embrace cloud technology that provides meteorologists with 24/7 remote access.

“I will commit to you that the next time you see me, the concept of having three people at some regional office will be laughable, because our 2,000 meteorologists and our hundreds of hydrologists will be able to stay and forecast and protect us in a modern way,” Lutnick said.

He also said NWS plans to increase its use of AI technology.

“This year, the National Weather Service will be running an experimental AI-based forecast system, and all data we will make publicly available,” Lutnick said. “Today, this commitment to innovation means earlier warnings and increased accuracy for Americans, no matter where they live.”

Democrats continued to challenge Lutnick’s remarks on staffing after the hearings, with Senate Commerce Committee Ranking Member Maria Cantwell (D-WA) stating there are at least five vacancies at the National Hurricane Center and at least 40 vacancies for hydrologists across NWS.

Appropriators probe delays in contracts, budget details

Democratic appropriators expressed disappointment that the administration has yet to submit details on its budget request or how it intends to spend the money Congress appropriated for the current fiscal year. The spend plan was due to Congress at the end of April.

They also noted the growing backlog of contract approvals at NOAA. At the Senate hearing, Lutnick confirmed that he is personally reviewing all NOAA contracts over $100,000 with the help of his team.

Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) said that there are currently 5,700 contracts in NOAA set to expire this year and questioned the efficiency of Lutnick’s review plan.

Lutnick replied that he ran his business in a similar way. “[As a CEO], you should know everything that’s going through,” he said. “You should do [the reviews] with your staff. You should teach your staff how to do it, and then you should delegate them to do it,” he added.