NORTH LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — As staffing shortages ripple across the National Weather Service (NWS), offices serving Arkansas are scaling back certain services, raising concerns about long-term forecasting capacity and public communication in the Natural State.
The Trump administration has implemented sweeping changes to the NWS, slashing hundreds of positions nationwide. According to the Associated Press, nearly half of the agency’s 122 field offices are now operating with at least 20% fewer staff. Several of those offices — including a number serving Arkansas — are no longer staffed around the clock. Many experienced forecasters and managers have been offered, and have taken, voluntary early retirement.
In response to questions about the cuts, Erica Grow Cei, a spokesperson for the Weather Service’s national office, said that leadership at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is working to address the staffing shortfall. That includes assigning temporary personnel to high-need offices and preparing to open a limited number of permanent “mission-critical” positions under an exception to the ongoing federal hiring freeze.
Despite the disruptions, Cei insisted the NWS remains committed to its core mission: “providing life-saving forecasts, warnings, and decision support services to the public.”
In Tulsa, which oversees seven counties in northwest Arkansas, meteorologist Mike Lacy confirmed a roughly 20% staff reduction. However, he said all services are still being delivered as usual.
That’s not the case further south. In North Little Rock, the NWS office has begun scaling back — and in some cases, eliminating — services. According to an email sent Friday to agency partners, two products have been permanently discontinued: the Hazardous Weather Outlook and Agricultural Observations.
The Hazardous Weather Outlook was a textual product that highlighted potential threats like storms or extreme conditions up to seven days in advance. The North Little Rock team is currently testing a replacement that uses graphical content instead. Agricultural Observations, which offered weather insights specific to farming, has also been dropped.
Jimmy Barham, the meteorologist-in-charge in North Little Rock, said both services had become increasingly outdated and weren’t drawing much user engagement. “People are going to social media now, not to our website,” he explained. “A lot of times, when we shut down these old products, we don’t get a single phone call.”
While Barham acknowledged that the office has fewer employees than it did earlier this year, he declined to share specifics about staffing losses or the number of retirements. Officially, the office lists 21 staff members — but not all those positions are currently filled.
“We’ve had a reduction in staff kind of throughout the spring,” he said. “We’re still 24/7, and Arkansas is still covered at all times.”
In a message to partners, Barham emphasized that the agency’s ability to issue life-saving warnings and forecasts remains intact, and that staff levels will increase when severe weather demands it — just as they did before.
But the changes don’t stop with the discontinued products.
Starting July 13, upper-air balloon launches, which collect critical atmospheric data, will shift from 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. to 7 p.m. and 1 a.m. The move allows launches to take place when more staff are on hand — a safety measure, since the balloons are filled with hydrogen.
Meanwhile, public outreach events, including SKYWARN storm spotter training, are being suspended indefinitely. Forecast discussions, once issued twice a day, will now be limited to one post-dawn release unless conditions demand an update. Aviation discussions will continue in sync with each Terminal Aerodrome Forecast update.
Processing of climate data will also be pared back. The midnight run will continue, but the afternoon intermediate version will now be automated. Graphicast updates, which provide visual weather briefings online, will only be issued when there’s significant weather to report.
Barham expressed hope that these changes will go largely unnoticed by the public. “We’ll still be here 24/7,” he said. “Our core mission — protecting life and property — doesn’t change. We’ll continue issuing warnings and staffing up as needed for major events.”
Still, he acknowledged the importance of transparency: “When we reduce services, it’s our responsibility to let the public and our partners know.”
These changes are not unique to North Little Rock. Last month, the Shreveport office — which covers nine counties in southwest Arkansas — also announced temporary service reductions. In a message to partners, Brad Bryant, the meteorologist-in-charge in Shreveport, reiterated that their operations remain active around the clock, with a forecaster always available to answer questions or respond to weather concerns.
The National Weather Service has undergone several transformations since it was founded as the U.S. Weather Bureau in 1870. The Little Rock office opened in 1874 and became a full forecast center in 1971, taking over responsibilities from Memphis. Now, more than 150 years after its founding, the agency is navigating its latest challenge — maintaining reliability and readiness amid the most significant staffing shift in a generation.
