By Abby Young, Gaylord News
WASHINGTON – Rep. Tom Cole (R-Moore) announced in a statement on Friday that three federal offices, including Norman’s National Weather Center and the Social Security office in Lawton, will not terminate their leases.
The statement comes after concern that the organizations would fall to cuts from the Department of Government Efficiency, an organization headed by Elon Musk that seeks to cut federal spending.
Along with the National Weather Center, the Social Security Administration Office in Lawton and the Indian Health Services Office in Oklahoma City will remain operational. Preserving these offices is “common sense,” Cole wrote in the release.
“All three of these places provide vital and valuable services to Oklahomans and I am so proud to have advocated for them,” Cole wrote in the release. “As the Representative for Oklahoma’s Fourth District, I will always fight for Oklahomans and my constituents!”
Cole’s 4th Congressional district stretches along I-35 from Oklahoma City to the Texas state line and west to Frederick and Lawton, where two of the three offices are located.
Earlier on Friday, Stand Up for Science, a grassroots organization calling for federal research funding and expansion, organized nationwide protests and walkouts, including in Oklahoma City and Washington, D.C..
Protests over fears National Weather Center
Meanwhile, about 60 protesters gathered in Norman at the National Weather Center to decry recent layoffs.
In February, an unknown number of National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration employees were laid off. The Associated Press reported there were likely between 580 and 1,200 layoffs, citing current and former NOAA employees.
The firings impacted Norman’s National Weather Center, and an anonymous NOAA employee in Norman told the OU Daily that an estimated 15 to 20 people were laid off.
“NWS employees will do everything they can to fulfill their mission,” the employee said, addressing how the center will continue to function with fewer staffers.
On March 4, Axios reported the lease had been canceled for Norman’s Radar Operations Center, but other outlets could not confirm that.
That same day, Cole wrote in a press release that he was working with President Donald Trump’s administration to preserve Norman’s National Weather Center.
“As a resident of Moore, I know firsthand how important the National Weather Center in Norman is,” the release read. “The center saves lives by alerting the American people when a tornado, hurricane, or any other severe storm is coming their way.”
Last week, Cole told reporters he wasn’t concerned about National Weather Center layoffs because “it’s not a big number,” he said.
Despite Cole’s announcement, as of Friday evening the three offices remain on DOGE’s list of leases to be terminated.
Abby Young is reporting with Gaylord News’ Washington bureau as part of a partnership with OU Daily. Gaylord News is a reporting project of the University of Oklahoma Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication. For more stories by Gaylord News go to GaylordNews.net. For more stories by the OU Daily go to OUDaily.com
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