Now that the Atlantic hurricane season has officially begun, lawmakers and emergency preparedness officials around the country are becoming anxious about the Trump administration’s staffing cuts at the National Weather Service and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
The NWS, part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration at the Commerce Department, has lost about 600 employees, or roughly 15 percent of its workforce, through layoffs or buyouts in the past four months. FEMA, which is part of the Department of Homeland Security, has seen about 2,000 of its 6,100 employees leave since January, according to published reports.
The cuts have come as NOAA warned in May of an active hurricane season, with a likelihood of 13 to 19 named storms, of which six to 10 could become hurricanes and three to five of those are expected to be in Category 3, 4 or 5. The season runs from June 1 to Nov. 30.
