Moskowitz, Flood Push to Fill Critical Staffing Shortages at the National Weather Service

WASHINGTON, DC — Congressmen Jared Moskowitz (D-FL-23) and Mike Flood (R-NE-01) introduced their Weather Workforce Improvement Act, bipartisan legislation to boost staffing at NOAA’s National Weather Service as the agency faces critical workforce shortages. Joining Moskowitz and Flood on the bill are Congressmen Frank Lucas (R-OK-03), Jimmy Panetta (D-CA-19), and Eric Sorensen (D-IL-17).

Their bill comes at the start of hurricane season, during which communities across Florida rely on the National Weather Service to prepare for and stay safe in the face of natural disasters. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) previously predicted that this year’s hurricane season would show above-normal hurricane activity, with a forecasted range of 13 to 19 total named storms.

“Hurricane season is here, and the National Weather Service is facing critical workforce shortages. It’s not the time to let misguided layoffs at the hands of Elon Musk and DOGE stand,” said Congressman Moskowitz. “Let’s be clear: filling gaps at this agency is a public safety priority, and through this bipartisan bill, we can be sure it has the meteorologists, technicians, and other staff it needs to keep Florida communities safe and prepared.”

“The National Weather Service has long provided critical weather data and forecasts used by the media and public across the United States. Granting them direct hiring authority will ensure that previous and future workforce shortages can be addressed quickly, helping to minimize disruptions. Thank you to my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for their support of this legislation, and I look forward to working together to ensure that the agency continues to deliver the forecasts Americans rely on every day,” said Congressman Flood.

Under the bipartisan Weather Workforce Improvement Act, the Director of NOAA’s National Weather Service would have temporary, direct authority to fill critical staffing vacancies at the agency, speeding up the hiring process by bypassing standard procedures executed by the White House Office of Personnel Management (OPM). It would also direct that OPM designate these roles as public safety positions. Covered positions under the bill include meteorologists, hydrologists, technicians, and IT staff, and authorities given to the National Weather Service Director under it would expire either after two years or once all vacancies are filled.

According to reports, the National Weather Service has lost more than 550 employees so far this year due to layoffs and early retirements at the hands of the Trump Administration’s DOGE. In Central and South Florida alone, National Weather Service offices are up to nearly 40% understaffed, including at the National Hurricane Center in Miami, which is short five specialists. With such staffing shortages, some agency offices across the country have cut back on hours, no longer staff their overnight shirt, or are even missing a chief meteorologist.

Last month, Moskowitz introduced amendments to the House Republican budget bill that would have protected the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and NOAA from harmful cuts. Republicans blocked his amendments from coming to the House floor for consideration with their bill.

Moskowitz previously led more than twenty of his House colleagues pushing for the reinstatement of laid-off workers at the National Weather Service. Their letter to Office of Management & Budget Director Russell Vought and Acting Administrator of the General Services Administration Stephen Ehikian warned that failing to overturn workforce cuts would “weaken disaster preparedness, put more lives at risk, and increase the financial burden on recovering communities.”

A former Director of Emergency Management for the state of Florida, Moskowitz also joined a similar effort from all of Florida’s Democratic Congressional delegation, raising the alarm about the risk of workforce reductions on Florida’s hurricane season. 

For full text of Moskowitz’s bipartisan Weather Workforce Improvement Act, click HERE.

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