Tell the Congressional Oversight Committee to investigate the impact of staffing cuts on the Texas flood response.

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([link removed])

John,

As a mom, I’m devastated by the deadly flooding in Texas Hill Country that has torn so many families apart. And as a Texas resident, I’m questioning how this could have happened.

Climate change is worsening extreme weather events, including flash floods, while Trump’s efforts to eliminate core functions of the federal government led to key positions being vacant at the National Weather Service.

We need more than thoughts and prayers. We need action.

Write to your members of Congress and demand an investigation into the impact of Trump staffing cuts on the warning and response to the flooding in Texas. ([link removed])

Send Your Message ([link removed])

In January, Trump deployed Elon Musk and DOGE to rampage through federal agencies. They pressed for mass retirements and took particular aim at any agency that touched on climate change including the National Weather Service. Now, with the death toll from Texas floods over 100 — many of them children — we may be witnessing how deadly the consequences of these reckless actions are.

We’re calling on the Congressional Oversight Committee to investigate the impact of Trump staffing cuts on the devastating loss of life in Texas — send your message. ([link removed])

Flash floods are not new to Texas, but their intensity is increasing with climate change, as is that of other events like hurricanes and wildfires. Climate change and extreme weather are the biggest threat to our food, water, and communities, yet Trump and his allies in Congress have chosen to ignore this reality, promoting fossil fuels over renewable energy and taking aim at the agencies that provide warnings and responses to disasters like the National Weather Service and FEMA.

But cuts to vital agencies can have very real consequences. Trump’s efforts to dismantle the federal government through DOGE resulted in many vacant positions at the National Weather Service, including in Texas. Notably, a key warning coordinator meteorologist position in the regional office was vacant after the person in that role was encouraged by the Trump Administration to retire early,* along with thousands of other federal employees. As a whole, the National Weather Service is down 600 staff from its peak of 4000.

It is unclear the extent to which DOGE cuts and early retirements impacted warnings about the flood and how they were delivered. But understanding how the flood resulted in the loss of so many lives is critical to making sure it doesn’t happen again.

Tell Congress: We need an investigation into the impact of the cuts to the National Weather Service on early warning and evacuation efforts. ([link removed])

Send Your Message ([link removed])

With climate change continuing to accelerate, extreme weather events will become more common and intense. It’s critical that we have robust federal forecasting, early warning, and disaster response — all things that Trump has worked to dismantle. It’s time for Congress to stand up to this agenda, and that starts with an investigation about this latest tragic disaster.

Urge your members of Congress to demand that the Oversight Committee take action by conducting an investigation. ([link removed])

Onward together,

Christina Holtzen
Digital Design Lead and Texas resident
Food & Water Watch

*Deadly floods could be new normal as Trump guts federal agencies, experts warn ([link removed]), The Guardian

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