‘You don’t get to quietly scale back’: Congresswoman demands answers from NWS

U.S. Congresswoman Sharice Davids (D-KS) says the National Weather Service has failed to respond to her demands for answers about missed weather balloon launches.

She adds that seven more tornadoes touched down across the state this week, and critical atmospheric data collection disruptions continue.

Rep. Davids sent a letter to the NWS in April after EF-2 tornadoes with peak winds of 125 mph struck the Kansas City region, following reports that routine weather balloon launches may not have occurred.

In the letter, Davids requested a response within 30 days. That deadline has now passed with no reply regarding the critical forecasting tool.

According to upper-air data records, the standard 7 a.m. weather balloon launch was missed 25 out of the last 30 days at sites responsible for collecting data used in severe weather forecasting.

“Kansans deserve confidence that the systems meant to keep them safe are fully operational during tornado season, and meteorologists deserve the reliable data they need to do their jobs,” Davids says. “Instead, we’re seeing ongoing data collection failures and no transparency from the National Weather Service about why this keeps happening.”

A Pattern of Silence - and Danger

Davids notes that the missed launches are not an isolated concern.

On the morning of the April storms, she claims that multiple NWS offices in the region did not conduct the standard 7 a.m. balloon launches.

Just hours before tornadoes touched down, the Storm Prediction Center had identified no tornado threat in northeast Kansas.

Without the data collected from the balloons, Davids says the tornado watch for impacted areas was issued within an hour of touchdown - far later than normal.

“These are not abstract bureaucratic problems — they can directly impact how much time families have to get to shelter before dangerous storms hit,“ she notes. ”After seven more tornadoes touched down in Kansas this week, the administration owes the public answers and immediate action to address these reported failures before tragedy strikes.”

Weather balloon launches provide forecasters with real-time atmospheric measurements - including temperature, humidity, pressure, and wind conditions - that help determine tornado risk and storm intensity.

Missing launches can reduce forecasting accuracy and limit the data available to meteorologists during dangerous weather events.

“For decades, 7 a.m. weather balloon launches have been a standard part of how meteorologists track severe weather and protect communities,” Davids adds. “If that standard has changed, the National Weather Service owes Kansans clear answers about why — and the science and data behind that decision. You don’t get to quietly scale back something this important without transparency, especially in a state where severe weather can turn deadly fast."

What Davids Is Asking

In her April 22 letter - addressed to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, NOAA Administrator Dr. Neil Jacobs and NWS Director Kenneth Graham - Davids requested answers on:

• Whether weather balloon launches were missed on April 13 and why
• Whether missing data contributed to a delayed tornado watch in northeast Kansas
• Whether the NWS is implementing permanent changes to twice-a-day balloon launches, and if so, the justification
• How often supplemental midday balloons are launched, and whether the agency has resources to increase them
• Current staff vacancy levels at NWS Weather Forecast Offices in Pleasant Hill, Topeka, Wichita, Springfield, Dodge City, Goodland and Hastings
• Overall NWS staffing levels and how the current meteorologist count compares to April 2024
• The agency’s hiring and operational plans moving forward

A Year of Warnings Ignored

This is not the first time Davids has sounded the alarm.

In June 2025, she wrote to Commerce Secretary Lutnick demanding answers about dangerous staffing shortages at the NWS.

She warned that those shortages were putting Kansans at risk during an increasingly severe storm season.

That letter highlighted how the Trump administration’s hiring freeze and staffing cuts had left NWS field offices unable to operate around the clock.

Davids noted that the Goodland Weather Forecast Office - which serves more than 80,000 residents - was forced to cut back operations just days before an EF-3 tornado touched down nearby.

She also pushed NOAA at that time to explain how it would accelerate the hiring of 126 promised meteorologists and restore 24/7 forecasting capabilities to understaffed offices.

She also set a 30-day response deadline in that letter. Again, no response came.

“Every single person in this country relies on the NWS in their daily lives,” Davids wrote. “This agency is a top priority for public safety and national security, and indiscriminate cuts have only worsened the success of our nation’s weather forecasting.”

Now, nearly a year later, Davids says the pattern of silence continues - even as the storms rage on.

What’s at Stake

The consequences of degraded forecasting are direct and measurable, according to the Congresswoman.

When balloon launches are missed, atmospheric data is incomplete, Davids says. When accuracy suffers, warning time shrinks. And when warning time shrinks, families have less time to reach shelter.

Davids is renewing calls for accountability as missed launches and operational concerns persist into the 2026 severe weather season.