A record number of tornados in the state and other instances of extreme weather has Senator Chuck Schumer calling for $30 million in federal funds for the National Weather Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Schumer was at the National Weather Service center in Cheektowaga Tuesday.
He said the increase in cases of extreme weather makes additional funding for agencies that track weather a no-brainer.
“Unfortunately, because of climate change, this kind of extreme weather is not unusual anymore. It's not going to be unusual anymore. I'm not going to predict the weather that's for these folks here, but it is a problem,” he said. “There will be more of it in the future, just because our climate is changing so rapidly. But it shows how important the work that is done here at the National Weather Service is, if we can predict what's happening with both a degree of on time accuracy and geo geographic accuracy, it's very, very helpful.”
N.O.A.A. Assistant Secretary of Commerce Dr. Michael Morgan said weather services like his and the N.W.S. need to be at the forefront to ensure the country get the best and most accurate forecasts to help save lives and property.
“So far, just in this year, we've had the [greatest] number of severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings to date,” he said. “Since 2011 over 1300 severe thunderstorm warnings, over 2000 tornado warnings, 45 states with flash flood warnings, and 48 states with river flood warnings, and more than 21,000 wildfires as of the middle of this year, July 1. In addition to weather, we're also seeing the signs of climate change in front of our very eyes. June of 2024 marked the warmest June on record for global average surface temperatures, and the 13th consecutive month of record high global temperatures. June of 2024 also was the 15th consecutive month for record warm sea surface temperatures.”
Additionally, funding would boost the state’s Network of Monitoring Systems, or Mesonets—automated weather stations used to track and measure meteorological events and microclimates. There are 127 Mesonet stations in the state and three in Erie County.
Schumer also made the case that both agencies could be in danger of being defunded or even eliminated all together during another Donald Trump presidency.
“There's an extreme report floating around Washington. You've probably heard of it, called Project 2025,” he said. “That is the project put together by some of these extreme MAGA folks. But if they get into power next year, they're going to implement it. You know what they want to do? Close this place down. Yes, they want to privatize the whole Weather Service, and what does that mean? That means it's going to cost a lot more money to get weather reports. If you're a big business or a wealthy individual, you might be able to afford it. But what about our little homeowners, our little small businesses, our little farmers? Weather Service has always been something the federal government has done to help people understand the weather.”
Former President Trump has distanced himself from Project 2025 but Schumer says some of the authors of the project are former Trump Administration employees.
