Below is a transcript of the letter that I sent to Utah Senator John Curtis concerning the cuts being proposed for NOAA and the National Weather Service by President Trump and DOGE. A slightly modified version was sent to Representative Blake Moore and submitted to the Salt Lake Tribune for consideration as Public Commentary. If enacted, these cuts will put the safety of Utahn's at risk. Media reports suggest that the cuts being considered are 30% to the budget and 50% to personnel. There is no private sector company today ready to take on the enormous responsibility of protecting life and property in Utah from high-impact weather and cuts to the National Weather Service will weaken their ability to provide critical decisions support services to emergency managers. If you agree (or even if you disagree and want to share an alternative opinion), please consider writing your legislative leaders.
Dear Senator Curtis:
I am a Professor of Atmospheric Sciences at the University of Utah who has worked for 30 years to improve weather prediction in Utah. I lead research to improve the understanding and prediction of winter storms in Utah’s mountains and develop methods to improve snowfall forecasting across the continental United States using artificial intelligence. The forecast techniques my group has developed are used by the National Weather Service and private companies. I am also proud to have served as the graduate advisor for several Air Force officers who are contributing to weather support for our Nation’s defense. I write today as a private citizen. The views expressed in this letter are mine and independent from the University of Utah.
I am deeply concerned about the cuts being proposed by President Trump and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, especially the National Weather Service. The National Weather Service is widely recognized in public surveys as one of our Nation’s most important government agencies. The United States probably has the most diverse range of high-impact weather systems of any country in the world including hurricanes and tropical cyclones, floods and flash floods, tornadoes, heat waves, cold waves, winter storms, downslope windstorms, and wind-driven wildfires. Many of these affect Utah, including flash floods in canyon country, winter storms statewide, and downslope windstorms (also known as canyon winds) along the northern Wasatch Front and other areas of Utah. The National Weather Service provides essential weather forecasts to protect lives and property during these high-impact weather events. They provide timely and accurate weather forecasts and have developed strong relationships with emergency managers and other partners to prepare for storms, respond to weather-related hazards, and provide decision support services.
The National Weather Service Forecast Office in Salt Lake City provides forecasts and decision support services for most of the State of Utah. The National Weather Service is currently understaffed due to chronically low hiring rates over the past several years. Current hiring freezes and staffing reductions will further exacerbate this situation, placing Utah’s emergency response to high-impact weather at risk. One need only look to the recent wildfires in California to see how vulnerable urban areas in downslope wind areas can be during drought. Utah is not immune to such wildfire hazards, especially along the northern Wasatch Front, but also in many other regions.
The National Weather Service is also critical for our Nation’s weather, water, and climate enterprise, which has benefited from the long-term synergy between the public, private, academic, and military sectors to improve weather observations and forecasts. I have observed this throughout my career but also during the time I spent as an elected member of the Council of the American Meteorological Society, which serves all four of these sectors. The National Weather Service and its partners in NOAA, the FAA, the Department of Defense, and NASA, develop and maintain foundational weather observing systems including geostationary and polar orbiting satellites, surveillance weather radars, and surface observing systems at airports and other weather sensitive locations. The National Weather Service also runs a complex suite of computer forecast models that take all this weather data and provide forecasts for the Nation, as well as American interests around the world. This data is freely available to the public, including private companies, who in turn produce value-added products for their customers. For example, I have former students who use National Weather Service data to improve efficiency and profitability at companies such as Amazon Prime Air.
The proposed cuts in the National Weather Service budget and staffing come at a time when we are entering our Nation’s must vulnerable period for high-impact weather: the spring tornado season; hurricane season (beginning June 1st); and wildfire season, which in some areas of the western US is now year round, but will expand across other areas of the west in the coming months.
Historically, support for the National Weather Service and weather observations, forecasts, and research has been bipartisan. Even this week, Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Alex Padilla (D-CA) announced bipartisan legislation to improve the atmospheric river forecasting, an activity that would benefit Utah. I ask that you work to ensure adequate funding and staffing of the National Weather Service so that they can fully meet their mission of protecting lives and property here in the State of Utah.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Dr. Jim Steenburgh
I believe that the creation of DOGE itself is an illegal act that violates the US Constitution. Below is the "Appointments Clause"
ReplyDeleteArticle II, Section 2, Clause 2:
He shall have Power, by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, to make Treaties, provided two thirds of the Senators present concur; and he shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the supreme Court, and all other Officers of the United States, whose Appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by Law: but the Congress may by Law vest the Appointment of such inferior Officers, as they think proper, in the President alone, in the Courts of Law, or in the Heads of Departments.
The key phrase here is "and all other Officers of the United States, whose Appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by Law" Established by law - meaning that Congress has created the department or agency that requires advice and consent for its appointee. In creating DOGE, Trump has totally bypassed Congress' power as the only body that can pass laws for creation of new government departments.
A clear and well presented letter. I hope they consider it and don’t just let an unelected billionaire in a pretend agency destroy our country. They’re republicans though, so I won’t be holding my breath that they’ll do the right thing.
ReplyDeleteWe all need to be writing such letters.
ReplyDeleteI doubt the founders never envisioned a federal government/workforce that have more control than the Congress that created their roles. Unelected and almost ineligible for losing their jobs is not a good recipe for being efficient stewards of the billions of $s they are afforded each year, by a Congress that refuses to even pass a new budget year over year. People voted for change and challenges to the status quo in Federal agencies. Why Ds are so OK with the largess in the federal bureaucracy is a mystery to me. Change is painful, but we need it to change culture. Oh well, what’s 10 billion here and 10 billion there in waste among friends.
ReplyDeleteWhat utter rubbish. More control than Congress? BS. The federal workforce is one of the great strengths of this country. But no, we should burn it all down for dear leader? This isn’t change, it’s arson, lawless and stupid. Could all agencies be improved, sure. But it’s D’s who always, always, bail the federal purse out of the hole the R’s put it in with their profligate giveaways to the rich.
DeleteThe founders would never envision adults having their teeth at age 35 nevermind American citizens brainwashed enough to vote for a traitorous rapist fool who is clearly sundowning and can barely pronounce simple words.
DeleteOp: reasonable argument on the demerits of a massive bureaucracy.
Deleteinsane leftist response: "The federal workforce is one of the great strengths of this country."
These are your allies Steenburg. Your cause *might* be just, but as long as you are associated with the most insane people, no one will believe you when you say that this federal program is critically important. (the NWS for example). Your "side" is infinite government, infinite bureaucracy, and infinite regulations.
So you think the people who monitor food safety, predict hurricanes, keep the western forests from burning down (as much as they can), study water resources, provide for the common defense, investigate crime, etc, etc are a NOT a strength of this country? And you think it’s insane to say they are? Have you been to a country without those things? You then go completely hyperbolic and spout some nonsense about someone wanting infinite federal government which no one said or even hinted at. Poster eve said much could be improved in feds? Can you have an adult conversation? I guess if you view the upper post as “reasonable” then that question has been answered.
Delete"Unelected and almost ineligible for losing their jobs is not a good recipe for being efficient stewards of the billions of $s they are afforded each year" Oh, you must be speaking of Elon Musk. As far as I know civil servants who work for LEGALLY created government agencies are just doing their jobs in an unpartisan manner where they typically serve both Republican and Democratic administrations throughout their tenure.
DeleteEveryone needs to calm down. It’s not a big deal and I’m sure Joe Biden will bring it back when he gets elected in 2028. Furthermore, this is a weather blog and if you’re venting here, maybe you need a better “safe space” or a couple of beers - you pick, but leave me out of it. Jim, you’re the man, brotha!
ReplyDeleteCalm down? Hey maybe you’re right, who needs a NWS or an FAA or a CDC, I mean like what can happen my bro? If we all just chilly chill muh dude it’ll be sick man.
ReplyDeleteNot in Utah anymore, but I’m writing my Senators and Rep similar letters. Who knows, maybe it will help? Kill jobs and destroy the economy, tax us to death with tariffs, install a day drunk tv host to run the military….no one voted for this.
ReplyDeleteThose commenting about so-called "leftists" seem content to be apologists for ever increasing concentrations of power in the billionaire class. Fighting the us versus them culture war, like we talking about a football game, that is a distraction from the power grab that's eroding our Representative Democracy. Contributing to the distraction economy that our Senior "Influencer" Senator from Utah spends all of his time on, "representing" us, also gleefully contributing. While he does little or nothing during his time in the Senate other than contribute to the weakening of the Legislative branch of our government in deference to a unitary executive, monarchy-style Presidency the founding fathers fought to overthrow in their time.
ReplyDeleteWe are in a class war, not a culture war. But the powerful have so effectively divided and conquered those who willingly participate in surveillance capitalism, like pigs to the slaughter.
I'm done laughing at those who think the richest in our country are "rugged individualists" that came about their gains through hard work and a free market, with purely benign intentions. When the shadow president made most of his wealth slurping at the public trough and now wants to take away any oversight that will get in his way of becoming a trillionaire. Happily playing a heel to manipulate the marks in our Society Of The Spectacle -based toxic politics.
Those who have spent a lifetime earnestly studying history know that we are living in the most corrupt moment in US political history. The Founding Fathers would be ashamed.
Appreciate the post! I think the letter is reasonable, as the NWS performs many important functions related to both scientific data and public safety. For me though its hard to believe how divided Americans have become over everything. If I can immediately tell which “side” politically someone is on, they probably aren’t thinking critically. Should not even have to say this but there are major problems with both political parties. We have a ton of corruption and waste all around and some of what is happening has needed to happen for a long time. But we also need to defend what is worth defending and budget cuts will require some hard decisions.
ReplyDeleteI sadly don’t think we can last long as a country with the type of division we have. If average people can’t regain our ability to have real and most of all respectful discussions instead of just defending one side and attacking those who think differently, then history shows us much worse things are coming. Make your voice heard to your representatives after seriously considering both sides of a given issue.
“Both sides bad” isn’t an unreasonable take, but it doesn’t match the reality of the current moment. The administration is breaking the law every day, and R senators are approving the most appallingly unqualified nominees. Sure, it would be nice if we all got along better, but maybe we can fix the crime from the administration first? Elect a criminal and you’ll get more crime I guess.
DeleteThank you. As always, excellent writing, argument and to the point.
ReplyDelete