NOAA set to slash jobs 'imminently'
Mass firings are set to hit the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) “imminently,” a source with knowledge told The Hill.
The person, who asked to speak anonymously due to fear of reprisal, said the agency had not yet been subjected to the steep cuts announced elsewhere due to the then-pending confirmation of Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.
The Commerce Department oversees NOAA and the National Weather Service. Lutnick is set to be sworn in Friday afternoon.
Many of the federal cuts thus far have targeted probationary workers, which includes recent hires but also those who have been recently promoted.
The source told The Hill that an original list of workers set to be fired comprised of new workers, except for veterans and Schedule A employees or noncompetitively appointed disabled workers. However, on Tuesday, the director and deputy director of NOAA were asked to add the excluded workers back on the list, the source added.
Lutnick denied in his confirmation hearing that he would seek to dismantle or privatize NOAA as Commerce secretary. However, Project 2025, the sweeping conservative governance blueprint published by the Heritage Foundation, calls for such a move, and associates of tech billionaire Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) were reportedly present at NOAA facilities earlier this month.
President Trump distanced himself from Project 2025 on the campaign trail but has appointed multiple figures associated with it since taking office, including White House budget director Russell Vought and Kathleen Sgamma, his nominee to lead the Bureau of Land Management.
The source told The Hill that deep cuts to NOAA will have tangible effects on Americans’ lives.
“People are relying on us for life-saving information about hurricanes and the weather that's coming towards them, even geomagnetic storms that take out telecommunication systems,” they said. “Cutting NOAA staff indiscriminately, not selectively based on the roles that they play, just based on the number of years that they've had experience in the agency, is going to cripple the agency and have a strong, negative impact potentially," the source added.
“People are going to lose their lives if the weather service isn't able to move forward as it has been,” the source added.
The Hill has reached out to NOAA and the Commerce Department for comment.
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