Economic Value of a Weather Decision Support System for Oklahoma Public Safety Officials

The Oklahoma Mesonet’s Public Safety outreach program, OK-First, has provided weather education and data delivery to the public safety community for the past twenty-five years. By delivering high-quality weather data tools, regular classes, and continued follow-up support to its trained members, the OK-First program has empowered more than 1,800 public safety officials. Testimonials from OK-First users indicate that there is an immense value in providing nonscientific audiences with meteorological information and training. OK-First users have saved lives and property using the the program. There has been no quantitative analysis, however, that evaluates the value of the OK-First program. This study fills a gap in providing quantitative analysis for the economic value of the OK-First program. This research used a modified travel cost method to measure the value of information provided by the OK-First program to the users of the program. Results suggest that the average willingness to pay for OK-First is $1,122 per training. The OK-First program in Oklahoma is valued at an estimated $254,000, with a collective surplus of $80,000 per training for OK-First users. This conservative estimate suggests the importance of programs such as the OK-First training, especially for public safety officials in Oklahoma.