As part of his ongoing plot to reshape the federal government, President Donald Trump’s administration proceeded on Wednesday to instruct agencies across the federal government to prepare for massive cuts.
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) sent agencies a memo with instructions for implementing “reductions in force.”
The measure is part of the executive order “Implementing The President’s ‘Department of Government Efficiency’ Workforce Optimization Initiative,” which Trump signed on Feb. 11.
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This latest memo is part of the president’s broader effort to purge the federal workforce. His administration has already laid off tens of thousands of probationary federal workers.
He has also placed other federal staff on administrative leave and offered a wide-ranging buyout to federal employees that included several months’ worth of severance.
Then, over the past weekend, Elon Musk’s DOGE foot soldiers emailed federal staff asking for a list of what they did over the past week. The billionaire, who owes a significant chunk of his companies’ success to government contracts, said that a failure to reply would result in termination.
Wednesday’s memo was cut from the same cloth. It instructed agencies to make “a significant reduction” in federal staff by cutting unnecessary positions, decreasing federal property, and reducing budgets.
The memo also instructs agencies to provide ideas by March 13 for working with Congress on restructuring plans and transferring agency funds between accounts.
Long-term plans for “a positive vision for more productive, efficient agency operations going forward” are due by April 14 and must be implemented by Sept. 30.
The memo also directs agencies to assess all employee job descriptions, performance evaluations, tenure, and veteran status. The memo further asks for ideas about relocating offices outside the DC metro area and improving efficiency with technology.
It also targets union collective bargaining agreements for renegotiation if those agreements could hinder cost-cutting and efficiency measures.
Agencies must justify why they retain programs and identify targets for future lay-offs. Further, the memo restricts new hiring to one position for every four people who leave.
Certain government areas, such as border security, national security, immigration enforcement, public safety, the military, and federal uniformed personnel, are exempt from the restructuring.
Agencies that provide direct services are directed not to implement changes until the OMB and OPM determine those changes will have a “positive effect” on service delivery.
