In the era of sweeping government budget cuts as a result of the second Trump presidency, the gutting of one particular program stands out to me. The National Weather Service is absolutely crucial for free, detailed and accurate weather information. To break it down and sell its parts to corporate interests is to betray tax-paying citizens in favor of monetary gain.
The National Weather Service is the premier weather forecasting service of the United States. A government agency funded by taxpayer dollars, it provides detailed information completely for free. The National Weather Service is, largely, responsible for the weather forecasts you see on television from organizations such as AccuWeather and The Weather Channel. While those organizations can adapt the data from the NWS, the “raw,” most detailed information is always available for free on their various websites.
The National Weather Service has operated relatively free of interruptions in most of its history, but these current proposals aren’t new. Former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum is a very polarizing figure. He was a leader of the conservative movement in the 2000s, became very unpopular in Pennsylvania and lost re-election in a landslide, and ran unsuccessfully for President twice. He is well known for those things, but a forgotten aspect of him is his contempt for the National Weather Service.
In 2005, the senator introduced a bill that would prohibit the NWS from distributing its information to the public, except for severe weather alerts. The bill was panned, and opponents claimed that it would result in crucial weather information being locked behind a paywall. The bill died in the Senate, with no cosponsors, and faded into the books as a weird, failed proposal. The purpose behind the bill, however, did not die with Santorum’s senate career, and the privatization of the National Weather Service is now a bigger issue than it ever has been.
According to the Center for American Progress, the National Weather Service’s budget in 2022 was $1.3 billion dollars. Despite this, it generated $102 billion dollars in estimated public value. Starting in 2025, the National Weather Service has undergone significant budget and staff cuts under the guise of “reducing government spending.” The scale of the downsizing, which the New York Times reported as a 20% decrease of its staff, has raised fears of further downsizing that ultimately leads to privatization of the government agency.
Privatization of the National Weather Service would be disastrous. The National Weather Service is so good and so helpful because it is free. According to an article by Juan Declet-Barreto of the Union of Concerned Scientists, “Paywalled weather alerts will deprive individuals, households, or towns with lower incomes of access to life-saving services.”
Going back to Rick Santorum’s proposal, it is obvious why these government officials are so desperate to gut the National Weather Service. Rick Santorum received more than $11,000 dollars from AccuWeather CEO Joel Myers and his brother Barry Myers, including $2,000 two days before Santorum introduced his proposal to the Senate. In the Trump administration, his NOAA administrator Neil Jacobs is the chief atmospheric scientist of Panasonic Weather Solutions. Jacobs, according to PBS, is a vocal supporter of privatization of the NWS. Taylor Jordan, another Trump pick to lead NOAA, is a lobbyist for weather corporations. In Project 2025, an unofficial plan to shape the Trump presidency, commercializing the National Weather Service is an explicit goal. Many of Project 2025’s authors have ties to Trump or conservative government figures.
The downsizing of the National Weather Service has one clear goal: privatization and commercialization so that political donors and the rich can profit off of a taxpayer-funded, government-owned, non-profit agency. It is extremely important that the public pressure those in power to stop the insanity that is killing a life-saving, completely free organization.
Privatizing the National Weather Service is a Terrible Idea
By Nicolas Storer Rios ‘28
In the era of sweeping government budget cuts as a result of the second Trump presidency, the gutting of one particular program stands out to me. The National Weather Service is absolutely crucial for free, detailed and accurate weather information. To break it down and sell its parts to corporate interests is to betray tax-paying citizens in favor of monetary gain.
The National Weather Service is the premier weather forecasting service of the United States. A government agency funded by taxpayer dollars, it provides detailed information completely for free. The National Weather Service is, largely, responsible for the weather forecasts you see on television from organizations such as AccuWeather and The Weather Channel. While those organizations can adapt the data from the NWS, the “raw,” most detailed information is always available for free on their various websites.
The National Weather Service has operated relatively free of interruptions in most of its history, but these current proposals aren’t new. Former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum is a very polarizing figure. He was a leader of the conservative movement in the 2000s, became very unpopular in Pennsylvania and lost re-election in a landslide, and ran unsuccessfully for President twice. He is well known for those things, but a forgotten aspect of him is his contempt for the National Weather Service.
In 2005, the senator introduced a bill that would prohibit the NWS from distributing its information to the public, except for severe weather alerts. The bill was panned, and opponents claimed that it would result in crucial weather information being locked behind a paywall. The bill died in the Senate, with no cosponsors, and faded into the books as a weird, failed proposal. The purpose behind the bill, however, did not die with Santorum’s senate career, and the privatization of the National Weather Service is now a bigger issue than it ever has been.
According to the Center for American Progress, the National Weather Service’s budget in 2022 was $1.3 billion dollars. Despite this, it generated $102 billion dollars in estimated public value. Starting in 2025, the National Weather Service has undergone significant budget and staff cuts under the guise of “reducing government spending.” The scale of the downsizing, which the New York Times reported as a 20% decrease of its staff, has raised fears of further downsizing that ultimately leads to privatization of the government agency.
Privatization of the National Weather Service would be disastrous. The National Weather Service is so good and so helpful because it is free. According to an article by Juan Declet-Barreto of the Union of Concerned Scientists, “Paywalled weather alerts will deprive individuals, households, or towns with lower incomes of access to life-saving services.”
Going back to Rick Santorum’s proposal, it is obvious why these government officials are so desperate to gut the National Weather Service. Rick Santorum received more than $11,000 dollars from AccuWeather CEO Joel Myers and his brother Barry Myers, including $2,000 two days before Santorum introduced his proposal to the Senate. In the Trump administration, his NOAA administrator Neil Jacobs is the chief atmospheric scientist of Panasonic Weather Solutions. Jacobs, according to PBS, is a vocal supporter of privatization of the NWS. Taylor Jordan, another Trump pick to lead NOAA, is a lobbyist for weather corporations. In Project 2025, an unofficial plan to shape the Trump presidency, commercializing the National Weather Service is an explicit goal. Many of Project 2025’s authors have ties to Trump or conservative government figures.
The downsizing of the National Weather Service has one clear goal: privatization and commercialization so that political donors and the rich can profit off of a taxpayer-funded, government-owned, non-profit agency. It is extremely important that the public pressure those in power to stop the insanity that is killing a life-saving, completely free organization.
Sources:
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/as-trump-slashed-weather-agency-his-appointees-have-ties-to-companies-that-stand-to-benefit-from-privatizing-forecasts
https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2026/03/17/noaa-weather-forecasts-climate-science-doge-cuts/88984244007
https://www.americanprogress.org/events/forecasting-disaster-how-doges-cuts-to-noaa-will-affect-weather-awareness-and-well-being
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/08/climate/noaa-layoffs-trump.html
https://www.starnewsonline.com/story/news/2005/07/12/an-ill-wind-blows-bad-bill-our-way-to-cut-off-vital-weather-info/30788142007