1. United States
2. N.C.
3. Letter

The recent firing of hundreds of employees at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is deeply concerning. NOAA plays a critical role in monitoring and predicting extreme weather events, collecting climate data, and sustainably managing our oceans and fisheries. These indiscriminate layoffs will severely undermine the agency's ability to carry out its vital work, putting lives and property at risk. Many of those let go were dedicated civil servants with decades of expertise and institutional knowledge. Their abrupt termination represents a significant loss of human capital that will be challenging to replace. Rebuilding this capacity will take years and comes at a great cost to the agency and the American public it serves. Furthermore, dismissing a diverse pool of talent recruited through programs like Schedule A is counterproductive to efforts to create a federal workforce that reflects the nation's diversity. These layoffs undo important progress made in this area. I urge you to reinstate the employees who were wrongfully terminated. Their skills and experience are invaluable assets that ensure NOAA can effectively fulfill its mission of protecting lives, resources, and economic well-being. Restoring the workforce is paramount to safeguarding public safety and enabling data-driven policymaking on environmental issues that impact us all. The American people deserve a fully staffed and operational NOAA.