With all the recent talks about which federal agencies may see reductions in funding and staff with the new presidential administration, the National Weather Service (NWS) has been at the forefront of conversations.
For starters, the NWS costs the average tax-paying American $3-4 per year. That’s about the cost of one cup of coffee. As of now, the NWS has a budget of around $1.38 billion, with around $102.1 billion returned in estimated public value. That’s a whopping 73:1 return on investment.
So what exactly does the National Weather Service do? We don’t have time to name everything, but here is the big picture.
NWS writes aviation forecasts for airports across the country to help airlines and pilots make decisions that impact aviation safety. They also issue all weather watches, advisories, and warnings.
The NWS works directly with emergency managers to help them prepare for upcoming weather events such as where to stage resources, when to open cooling/warming centers, where to evacuate people from, etc.
They work with transportation agencies so they know when to clear roads and what chemicals to use. They talk with school superintendents to make sure they have weather information needed to make safety decisions for their students. They provide information to farmers to help them make decisions to maximize their yield and minimize risks and costs.
The NWS writes intricate forecast discussions every few hours which are used by meteorologists in many other weather-related sectors. They also run numerous weather models and observation systems across the country that help scientists in many sectors make forecasts and decisions.
The NWS provides information and services that are vital to public safety and reductions in funding and staff could have life-threatening impacts.
