State Climatologists are the recognized subject matter experts on the climate for their respective states. They also develop a deep understanding of the requirements for climate services at the state, county and local levels through their extensive networks of stakeholders and customers. They direct State Climate Offices in executing effective programs to provide individual customer support, developing applied climatology products, monitoring and coordinating on climate conditions throughout the state and responding to extreme events, and in conducting education and outreach.  This makes the State Climatologist a critical part of the National Climate Services Partnership, which provides a continuum of climate products and services from the Federal, to the Regional, to the State and local levels.

This session provides an overview of several diverse State Climate Offices and how they leverage Regional Climate Centers and Federal Partners to provide effective climate services at the state and local levels. 

It also describes the role of the Regional Climate Centers and how they provide critical services to facilitate the work of the State Climate Offices.  Specifically, the RCCs provide regional and sector-specific data products and services. They also offer robust computer-based infrastructure for providing climate information and web services.

Finally, it describes the role of the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) as the national partner.  NCEI is responsible for the archive, quality control, dissemination, monitoring, and description of global and nationally observed climate data. These data are the source for local, regional, national, and global climate descriptors and summaries produced by NCEI.