04.03.25

Rep. Magaziner, Natural Resources Committee Members Discuss Trump-Musk Attacks on NOAA with Expert Panelists at Issues Forum

Washington, D.C. – Yesterday, U.S. Representative Seth Magaziner (D-R.I.) and U.S. House Natural Resources Committee Members hosted an issues forum titled “Attacks on NOAA Threaten American Communities and Economies.” During this forum, the Members examined the dangerous consequences of the Trump administration’s ongoing campaign to dismantle the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Members and panelists warned that Trump and Musk’s attacks are calculated moves to silence scientists, privatize public services, and reward tax breaks to billionaires at the expense of the American people.

“From farmers and first responders to entire coastal communities, NOAA is integral to protecting Americans' safety and keeping our economy running,” said Ranking Member Huffman. “Today’s forum made one thing clear: the Trump administration's reckless policies are not attacks on NOAA, but also attacks on public safety, good-paying jobs, and the scientific knowledge our communities depend on. By firing experts, slashing critical funding, and privatizing weather data, the administration is putting American lives at risk with the sole purpose of rewarding billionaires. Dismantling NOAA doesn’t just hurt public servants—it hurts everyone.”

“Fishing is part of who we are in Rhode Island—and data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on weather, fish stocks, and more plays a critical role in protecting lives and livelihoods in the Ocean State,” said Rep. Seth Magaziner. “I was proud to bring voices together and host today’s forum with House Natural Resources Committee Democrats to elevate local challenges and shine a light on the reckless cuts to NOAA by Trump and Musk that hurt the Ocean State and its coastal economy.”

"Whether we call it climate change, sea level rise, or nuisance flooding, it is happening, and it is happening at an increased level, including in Maryland’s Third District. Our state is incredibly vulnerable to the impacts of unpredictable weather, which is why I want to thank NOAA staff for your service. House Democrats understand what you deliver for the American people every single day, and I apologize that you are not receiving the respect that you deserve,” said Congresswoman Sarah Elfreth. 

"In my district, extreme weather is already endangering critical infrastructure, including at Naval Base Ventura County and the Port of Hueneme, which are vital to both our security and local economy," said Congresswoman Julia Brownley. "Cuts to NOAA harm military readiness and weaken our community’s ability to respond to the growing dangers of climate change. NOAA’s forecasting, climate monitoring, and disaster response are essential to our resilience. By dismantling this agency, the Trump Administration is weakening disaster preparedness and putting communities across the country at greater risk of more destruction from frequent and severe natural disasters."

“Gutting NOAA will cost lives and livelihoods. For coastal states like Oregon, NOAA is a lifeline that keeps our economy resilient and our communities safe from climate-fueled disasters," said Rep. Maxine Dexter.  "Thank you, Ranking Member Huffman, for spotlighting Elon Musk’s dangerous cuts and standing with us to protect science, safety, and coastal communities.” 

"What this administration does not seem to understand is that science is how we understand the foundation of this world, how we prepare our constituents for weather events, our farmers for their work, and our communities to respond to a rapidly changing climate," said Rep. Melanie Stansbury. "Cuts to this service will have severe consequences nationally and in my home state because we use the data from NOAA for everything. These mass firings will leave nothing behind but a mess that has undermined our ability to predict the weather with life or death consequences on the ground."

“The cuts to NOAA’s funding and workforce are thoughtless and jeopardize the safety of countless Oregonians,” said Rep. Val Hoyle. “NOAA’s ocean mapping and weather forecasting helps our commercial fisherman safely navigate dangerous ocean waters as they harvest fish that feed our country, and it also helps our wildland firefighters with advanced warnings on dangerous weather conditions. These forecasts help our communities and can be the difference between life and death. There is no reason to gut this agency which provides critical information that is integral to protecting every community in my district and across this country.”

ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND

NOAA plays a vital role in protecting lives and supporting livelihoods across the United States. Its forecasts and data support industries from agriculture to tourism, while providing life-saving alerts and environmental monitoring that keep communities safe. Every day, Americans rely on NOAA to help navigate floods, fires, hurricanes, and other climate-fueled disasters.

Despite its critical mission, NOAA has become a primary target of the Trump administration and Musk’s DOGE. Since January, NOAA has faced an unprecedented wave of political interference: censorship of climate research, purging of expert staff, the shutdown of oversight committees, and forced layoffs impacting more than 800 employees. DOGE operatives have unlawfully accessed NOAA systems, including internal communications and grants databases, raising serious questions about data integrity and whistleblower retaliation.

These actions have already disrupted NOAA’s core functions. Weather balloon launches have been reduced, community resilience programs scaled back or shuttered, and offices around the country remain closed. Meanwhile, extremist proposals to dismantle or privatize NOAA will put essential weather alerts and environmental data behind paywalls, endangering farmers, first responders, and coastal economies. House Democrats are committed to exposing this dangerous agenda and defending the public services that keep Americans safe and our economy strong.
 

PANELIST QUOTES


"We have no idea how NOAA will keep functioning with these budget cuts. We have no idea how much expertise and knowledge has been lost in these firings. We have no idea what else the Trump administration will do to destroy NOAA. And we have no idea who else is slated to be let go,” said Marce Gutiérrez-Graudinš, Founder and Executive Director, Azul. “To name just a few examples, Digital Coast helped Florida use high-level surface mapping to improve their flood vulnerability assessments. It helped Southern California collaborate on innovation projects for their renewable economy. It helped Northern Mariana Islands better prepare for tsunamis. It helped improve storm surge modeling for Caribbean disaster preparedness programs. It helped inform watershed management in Florida. It helped promote ecotourism in Virginia through watershed conservation. It helped analyze urban growth and flood risk in North Carolina. It helped lower flood insurance premiums in South Carolina. The list could go on and on. NOAA's tools have helped every one of these communities and so many more. So what will happen when there's no longer the budget for these tools, for the scientists, and the data experts who know how to use them? The unfortunate result is that communities will suffer across the U.S."

"In my last job in the Navy, I was the oceanographer and navigator of the Navy. Just as importantly, I was the Navy deputy to NOAA. That's how important the Navy sees this relationship between our Navy and NOAA, in that they assign an admiral to be a deputy to the director of NOAA,” said RADM Jon White, USN (Ret.). “Without the NOAA information, without leading the world in this, then our national security and the safety of our men and women in uniform is at risk. […] And it worries me a lot because I just know that there are men and women in uniform out there who rely on this information. There are parents and husbands and wives who rely on having the best information possible to keep their loved ones safe and to make sure that we maintain our national security and that home and away game advantage for years to come.” 

“Agency staff at every level have been demoralized and marginalized. When coupled with cuts to grants and fellowships and increased job insecurity, we are at a serious risk of alienating the next generation of scientists, policymakers, and leaders who would help the United States weather future storms,” said Elizabeth L. Lewis, Senior Associate Attorney, Eubanks & Associates. “NOAA simply cannot carry out its critical functions on limited staff, shrinking budgets, and aging equipment. Therefore, there is no doubt that if the Administration's vision for NOAA becomes reality, American businesses will suffer, and even more tragically, lives will be lost.”

“In the two months since [January 20], the administration has abdicated its citizen-granted authorities to Elon Musk, the wealthiest man on the planet, and this unelected, unaccountable billionaire has torn through agency after agency, destroying a public service infrastructure that took decades to build. And it's clear that everyday Americans are not this administration's priority,” said Sarah Schumann, Fisherman, and Owner/Principal Consultant, Shining Sea Fisheries Consulting, LLC. “All of the ambitious and visionary things that fishermen desperately need, the faster, more collaborative data collection and decision-making, the greater attention to the multitude of stressors affecting fishery habitats, the supports for young people to enter and thrive in fishing careers, will be vastly more difficult to achieve with a diminished and distressed NOAA workforce.”

“I worked for The Weather Company, and there is no weather forecast that's produced in this country that isn't dependent on NOAA,” said Mary Glackin, retired NOAA official, American Meteorological Society. “In [Florida], we have 5.3 million acres of submerged lands that are managed through NOAA programs, and this is a combination of the Estuarine Research Reserves, the Coral Reef Conservation Project, the sanctuary that's there, and coastal zone management. And why is this important to us? These areas safeguard water quality, buffer against storms and flooding, and provide critical habitat for fisheries and wildlife. They drive tourism and recreation, one of the prime economic drivers in Florida. They see over 100 million visitors annually for these world-class recreation activities, and without these programs, we are going to see increased pollution. Make no mistake about that. This could not be a worse time of year. We have the severe weather coming across. We haven't seen our first hurricane yet, but I guarantee you it's coming. And right now I fear that the only thing keeping us from real disaster is the heroic efforts of NOAA staff.”


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