Amo and 33 Members Send Up Signal to Trump: Restore Vital Weather Balloon Launches Amid Extreme Weather

Washington, D.C.- TODAY, Congressman Gabe Amo (D-RI) led 33 Members of Congress in calling on the Trump Administration to restore the twice-a-day weather balloon launch schedule, as extreme weather and high heat hit across the country.

Twice-a-day weather balloon launches collect information from high in the atmosphere that allows for more accurate forecasting. Current disruptions to the balloon launch schedule create data gaps that undermine confidence in forecast accuracy.

The Members write:

We are alarmed by the reduction in weather balloon launches and its impact on the accuracy of weather forecasting across the United States. Timely and accurate weather forecasts are critical to protecting the lives, livelihoods, and property of the American people.

This is a manufactured crisis. President Trump and DOGE haphazardly slashed the NWS workforce by roughly 15 percent without considering the impact on public safety. Now, the American people are paying the price. Current efforts to fill staffing gaps at NWS are too little too late. Severe weather will not wait for NWS to hire and train hundreds of new staff. NWS must immediately restore balloon launch capacity before an inaccurate or delayed forecast puts our constituents in harm's way.

Continued failure to follow the twice-a-day balloon launch schedule undermines the accuracy of NWS weather forecasts and increases the likelihood that the American people will be left unprepared for severe weather events. Forcing our constituents to accept increased risks because of your shortsighted and partisan staffing cuts is unacceptable. You must protect Americans' lives, livelihoods, and property by immediately returning to the twice-a-day balloon launch schedule.

The full letter can be found here.

The letter was signed by Representatives Wesley Bell (D-MO-01), Donald Beyer (D-VA-08), Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR-01), Julia Brownley (D-CA-26), André Carson (D-IN-07), Ed Case (D-HI-01), Kathy Castor (D-FL-14), Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO-05), Jim Costa (D-CA-21), Jasmine Crockett (D-TX-30), Sharice Davids (D-KS-03), Adriano Espaillat (D-NY-13), Lizzie Fletcher (D-TX-07), Maxwell Frost (D-FL-10), Sylvia Garcia (D-TX-29), Adelita Grijalva (D-AZ-07), Pablo Hernández (D-PR), Jared Huffman (D-CA-02), Sara Jacobs (D-CA-51), Henry Johnson (D-GA-04), Stephen Lynch (D-MA-08), Seth Magaziner (D-RI-02), April McClain Delaney (D-MD-06), Christian Menefee (D-TX-18), Seth Moulton (D-MA-06), Joe Neguse (D-CO-02), Brittany Pettersen (D-CO-07), Emily Randall (D-WA-06), Deborah Ross (D-NC-02), Haley Stevens (D-MI-11), Shri Thanedar (D-MI-13), Jill Tokuda (D-HI-02), and Paul Tonko (D-NY-20).

Background

Ranking Member of the House Science, Space, and Technology Environment Subcommittee, Congressman Amo has fought to reverse Trump's cuts to the National Weather Service and protect American meteorological might.

In Summer 2025, Amo led the charge to reverse Trump's damaging Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) cuts to the National Weather Service staff. After months of public pressure, the National Weather Service announced plans to hire 450 new staff.

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