Local Weather Services Set to Take a Hit Following Staff Cuts

Job reductions within the National Weather Service could impact offices across the country, including an office that covers weather forecasting for Central Oregon. The job cuts – a result of efforts from the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency to shrink the federal government — could result in a loss of round-the-clock staffing for offices including one in Pendleton, which covers a wide area that includes Central Oregon and northeastern parts of the state.

According to reporting from “The Washington Post,” the National Weather Service, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the parent agency of the weather service, had more than 4,200 employees before Donald Trump took office. Now, the article states, that number is being decreased by about 600 people.

According to Kim Doster, communications director for NOAA, the Weather Service is updating its service standards to prioritize “mission-essential operations.”

“The National Weather Service continues to meet its core mission of providing life-saving forecasts, warnings, and decision support services to the public, our partners and stakeholders. In the near term, NWS has updated the service level standards for its weather forecast offices to manage impacts due to shifting personnel resources,” Doster told The Source in an email.

“These revised standards reflect the transformation and prioritization of mission-essential operations, while supporting the balance of the operational workload for its workforce. NWS continues to ensure a continuity of service for mission-critical functions.”

State Climatologist Larry O’ Neill says some offices are already seeing impacts from federal decisions and are expected to see more. As of a week ago, the Pendleton Office was over 40% short-staffed and no longer has its chief meteorologist or its meteorologist in charge, O’Neill said.

“They’re really hurting over there. My understanding is that they are not doing overnight shifts, and that those shifts are being transferred over to the neighboring offices. And so basically, the office is empty for several hours during the night,” said O’Neill.

Staffing remains fluid, according to O’Neill, with a number of variables affecting the workforce. Things like the hiring freeze imposed in January and initial job reductions have already resulted in large losses. With more job losses expected to come, through a general reduction of the workforce, weather services are bracing for more firings.

It is unclear exactly how many job losses the local office has already experienced or is expecting. The Pendleton office declined to comment.

“Right now, it’s not looking as bleak as we might have expected, but there is definitely a little bit of a drop off,” O’Neill told The Source.

O’Neill says consequences include less accurate or timely weather warnings or advisories, and a loss of local insight into variable climates. In the short term, the Pendleton office cuts could impact up-to-date extreme heat advisories or wind and dry weather warnings that are conducive to wildfire growth.

Agencies such as the Oregon Department of Forestry and the U.S. Forest Service, he said, may have to rely more on their own personnel to do in-depth and updated weather forecasting to anticipate hazardous conditions.

Another factor is the expertise of local weather offices, who have more knowledge about the areas they cover.

“The local offices know where the mountains are. They know where all these little micro-climates are,” O’Neill said.

With a lot of variation on local mountain ranges and valleys, broader forecasts often don’t take those locations into account.

In the winter months, local agencies like the Central Oregon Avalanche Center rely heavily on weather predictions and models from the National Weather Service, requesting and receiving round-the-clock weather updates for its forecasting team.

According to COAC President Bryce Kellogg, a loss in overnight services could impact COAC in getting timely information when making avalanche forecasts.

In the past, Kellogg said, the Pendleton office had someone on duty at all times. At COAC, forecasters are often working in the evenings, and sometimes through the night, to write accurate next-day mountain forecasts. COAC, historically, was able to call the weather office to get updated information. With these cuts, Kellogg expects some of that to shift.

“They’ve been super helpful and willing to work with us in terms of providing us the best information that they can for making better avalanche forecasts,” Kellogg told The Source. “It’s disheartening to see that being cut, because I think it’s something that’s valuable for our region.”

Kellogg’s understanding is that, moving forward, COAC will be redirected to another weather office that is staffed after hours to receive up-to-date information. While the center is no longer issuing avalanche forecasts as the summer approaches, Kellogg anticipates the reductions in staff will impact how available the office is to them.

“Our forecasters are avalanche professionals and on-the-snow professionals, but they’re not meteorologists. So, we really rely on the Weather Service, as everybody does who’s providing any weather forecast in the U.S., on their models, their data collections, but also rely on their expertise for those forecasts,” Kellogg said.

This article appears in Source Weekly May 22, 2025.