Houston Democrats pressure Trump on region's NWS staff shortage
Driving the news: Reps. Lizzie Fletcher, Sylvia Garcia and Al Green sent a letter Monday to Department of Commerce leadership asking when roles will be filled at the NWS Houston/Galveston office in League City.
Departures at the office have left 11 of 25 positions vacant — including meteorologist-in-charge, warning coordination meteorologist and science and operations officer.
What they're saying:"Losing all three of these essential employees will increase the risk of errors or missed extreme weather warnings and exacerbate an already overworked staff," they wrote. "NWS forecast office employees are working longer shifts because of the forced staffing reductions, which is leading to severe worker burnout."
"NWS staff provide a vital public service to the Southeast Texas community, and these employees and our communities deserve better."
Zoom in: The NWS Houston/Galveston office is in charge of issuing timely and accurate forecasts, watches and warnings for a large swath of Southeast Texas, from Matagorda Bay to Trinity and College Station to the Bolivar Peninsula.
The office was short eight positions in March, and that number grew by May.
The other side: Trump's cuts to weather and climate services are part of a larger effort to trim the federal budget.
The representatives requested a timeline for filling leadership positions, plans for additional support during extreme weather and whether the Houston office will have to downgrade any services amid the administration's cuts to NOAA.
They're also seeking answers on how many Houston staffers have left since Trump took office, and how many were cut based on their probationary status.
"Adequate staffing for the NWS, especially as we go into hurricane season, is a critical matter that could cost lives if left unaddressed," they wrote.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Los Angeles Times
20 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
Obama endorses redrawing California congressional districts to counter Trump
Former President Obama endorsed California Democrats' plans to redraw congressional districts if Texas or another Republican-led state does so to increase the GOP's chances of maintaining control of Congress after next year's midterm election. Obama said that while he opposes partisan gerrymandering, Republicans in Texas acting at President Trump's behest have forced Democrats' hand. If Democrats 'don't respond effectively, then this White House and Republican-controlled state governments all across the country, they will not stop, because they do not appear to believe in this idea of an inclusive, expansive democracy,' he said at a fundraiser Tuesday in Martha's Vineyard that was first reported by the Associated Press on Wednesday. 'I wanted just a fair fight between Republicans and Democrats based on who's got better ideas, and take it to the voters and see what happens,' Obama said. '... but we cannot unilaterally allow one of the two major parties to rig the game. And California is one of the states that has the capacity to offset a large state like Texas.' Redistricting typically only occurs once a decade after the census, to account for population shifts. In 2010, Californians voted to create an independent redistricting commission to end partisan gerrymandering. California's 52 congressional districts were last redrawn in 2021. Earlier this summer, Trump urged Texas leaders to redraw its congressional boundaries to increase the number of Republicans in Congress. Led by Gov. Gavin Newsom, California Democrats responded and proposed redrawing the state's district lines and putting the matter before voters in a special election in November. The issue came to a head this week, with Texas lawmakers expected to vote on their new districts on Wednesday, and California legislators expected to vote on Thursday to call the special election. Obama called Newsom's approach 'responsible,' because the matter will ultimately be decided by voters, and if approved, would only go into effect if Texas or another state embarks on a middecade redistricting and line-drawing would revert to the independent commission after the 2030 census. 'I think that approach is a smart, measured approach, designed to address a very particular problem in a very particular moment in time,' Obama said.
USA Today
20 minutes ago
- USA Today
The congressional mess in Texas
Texas Republicans push for a vote on a new congressional map. North Carolina braces for towering waves from Hurricane Erin. And how money may be affecting your love life. 👋 How's it going? Rebecca Morin here. Let's get going to Wednesday's news! But first: A dark night sky. A rare black moon is set to occur this week – even if you can't see it. Texas' congressional map may soon look different Let the debate begin. Texas House Republicans on Wednesday are expected to vote on redistricting plans aimed at flipping five Democratic-held U.S. House seats in the 2026 midterm elections. Lawmakers began debating the proposed map, but it's unclear how quickly Republicans could approve it. The move follows a two-week walkout by Texas Democrats that temporarily delayed the bill. The rare mid-decade redistricting comes at Trump's urging as the president seeks to boost Republican chances of preserving their narrow U.S. House majority next year. Follow for the latest on the vote. Democrats still protesting: In an effort to ensure lawmakers remain in Texas, Republican House leaders have assigned state law enforcement officers to monitor them. Several Democrats slept in the Capitol building in protest and publicly tore up permission slips required by Republicans for members to leave the chamber. How one state lawmaker, Rep. Nicole Collier, started the protest by sleeping at the statehouse. Towering waves threaten North Carolina Less than 300 miles from North Carolina's Outer Banks, the center of Hurricane Erin will roar by – setting up the vulnerable region for an intense battering of waves and storm surge. The effects of the massive storm could destroy dunes, threaten beachfront houses and flood roads. Powerful waves of 15 to 20 feet are expected to slam beaches, especially in North Carolina, for 48 hours or more as the hurricane crawls northward offshore through at least Thursday. The National Hurricane Center said Wednesday afternoon that conditions are expected to 'deteriorate' in the Outer Banks and strongly discouraged swimming at most East Coast beaches. See Hurricane Erin's projected path. Real quick Double-check your luggage Magic 8 ball? Sure. Antlers? You're good to go. But don't you dare think about packing this one item in your checked luggage. The Transportation Security Administration banned three new items from checked bags: cordless curling irons or flat irons containing gas cartridges, butane-fueled curling irons or flat irons, and gas refills (spare cartridges) for curling irons or flat irons. These items are allowed in your carry-on bags as long as they have safety covers to prevent activation. Check out these weird TSA approved items. Your bank and your love life When looking for a relationship, what's more important: love or money? For many Americans, they don't want "no scrub." Although the median U.S. annual salary is about $62,192, Americans on average expect their ideal partner to earn six figures, a new survey found. Women on average want their ideal partner to earn $110,000, and men expect theirs to earn $90,000, according to a Tawkify survey of 1,000 Americans. Some responses were contradictory: More than 6 in 10 Americans (63%) said they would marry for love, even if it meant a lifelong financial struggle. But if forced to decide between love and money, 46% said they would pick the latter. How income could be a dealbreaker for some. A break from the news Rebecca Morin is a newsletter writer at USA TODAY. Got thoughts or feedback? Reach out to her at rdmorin@
New York Post
20 minutes ago
- New York Post
Gavin Newsom's gerrymandering scheme is a shameless power-grab at the expense of Californians
California Gov. Gavin Newsom pretends his blatant gerrymandering scheme is a battle for democracy, but he's spitting on the will of Golden State voters — merely to boost his bid to become Democrats' 2028 nominee. Falling in line with Newsom's demand to gerrymander Cali's House districts in retaliation for Texas' own redistricting, state lawmakers unveiled a redrawn map designed to move Democrats from 43 to 48 seats out of 52 total. Problem No. 1: With 2008 and 2010 ballot initiatives, voters wrote state law to cut the politicians out of redistricting, putting it in the hands of a citizen-led independent commission. So what Dems are actually rushing through is a new ballot proposal to rewrite the law through 2030 (giving legislators the right to redraw again, any time another state does) which voters would have to OK in a special election set for this Nov. 4. Problem No. 2: All new bills are supposed to face a 30-day 'cooling off' period for review before lawmakers vote, but Dems are trying to rush this through in under a week so they can meet to meet the deadline for the November ballot. Republicans are suing to stop that violation of the state Constitution; if the state's judges (chosen overwhelmingly by Democrats) let that go ahead, the voters may still reject the idea. Polling even early this month showed they wanted to stick with the independent commission by better than 2:1. Cue the burning of millions on nonstop TV ads trying to sell voters on this greasy power-grab. (By the way: Behind-the-scenes Dem maneuvering has left Cali's current 'nonpartisan' map pretty skewed: As Rich Lowry has pointed out, Republicans won nearly 40% of the statewide House vote in 2024, yet got only about 17% of the seats. Get opinions and commentary from our columnists Subscribe to our daily Post Opinion newsletter! Thanks for signing up! Enter your email address Please provide a valid email address. By clicking above you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Never miss a story. Check out more newsletters The GOP redistricting in Texas will only match that slant.) So the big winners here are Newsom's bid to cement his image as a no-holds-barred opponent of the GOP, plus the consultants who'll rake in big bucks to sell the public on something it hates. Meanwhile, Californians are fleeing the state in record numbers because Democratic rule has made it unaffordable. As a result, the state's on track to lose four House seats after the 2030 Census: The redistricting drive sure calls to mind 'rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.' It's not even a serious fix for national Democrats' woes: The party lost more than 2 million registered voters to the GOP just from Election Day 2020 to Election Day 2024, and another 200,000 in the nine months since. Newsom may be winning the love of Democrats' base, but he's leading the party to waste its time and money on gimmickry that has no hope of reversing its decline.
