1. United States
2. Maine
3. Letter

On May 9th, a NSF-funded entity known as Unidata announced a pause in operations due to an NSF funding freeze https://www.unidata.ucar.edu/blogs/news/entry/nsf-unidata-pause-in-most. Unidata is an entity that supports the atmospheric science community with resources to enable more efficient and effective weather forecasts using large datasets. Unidata’s efforts benefit American taxpayers in two primary ways: 1. Increasing the efficiency of scientists and forecasters using economies of scale. Many weather forecasts use similar data sources and workflows, and it would be inefficient if each forecasting entity (NWS offices and private corporations) had to independently set up data processing infrastructure from scratch. Unidata provides ready-made solutions to many of the most common weather data problems so we forecasters can stay focused on warning the public and businesses about potential threats to life, property, and/or profitability. 2. Educating students and professionals in data handling skills. Unidata also produces a number of educational resources that are used in classrooms and are freely available for the public to learn from, mostly relating to how to best program computers to analyze large quantities of atmospheric data. Training professionals highly competent in data analysis has a hugely positive ROI for the American taxpayer. I personally am an example of this. In 2019, I took a course offered by Unidata on the basics of handling meteorological data using python. I’m not sure exactly how much it cost to assemble the course materials and have the two instructors deliver the material one weekend. Some, but likely not all, of that was recouped with modest course fees, so it represented an investment in my skillset by the American taxpayer. Throughout 2020, I continued to use Unidata educational materials to develop my python skillset. I watched MetPy Mondays, a YouTube series of educational videos produced by Unidata, and modified the example code on the Unidata website to teach myself how to manipulate large datasets. By 2022, I got a job using these python skills to generate insights for a commodity trading firm. I would not have this job without the python skills that Unidata’s resources enabled me to develop. This job pays well and each year I pay vastly more in taxes than the marginal investment made in me (and many of my colleagues who have similar stories). In summary, Unidata is being shuttered due to an NSF funding freeze, which is unfortunate because of how much value it returns to the American taxpayer by maintaining commonly-used data processing solutions and by helping students and professionals learn the most up to date. I represent a concrete example of Unidata’s positive ROI, and strongly wish it to continue as soon as possible. Please feel free to reach out if you or your staff have any questions about Unidata or the value it provides. I look forward to the swift return of this important service.