The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has directed federal agencies to prepare plans for mass layoffs if the government shuts down next week due to the depletion of federal funding.
On Wednesday evening, the White House Office of Management and Budget sent a memo to federal agencies, asking them to identify programs, projects, and activities that would lose discretionary funding starting October 1, unless Congress passes legislation to keep the government open.
The memo stated that “programs that have not received additional mandatory funding will bear the brunt of the shutdown.” It also noted that once funding is restored, agencies must adjust their plans to retain only the minimum number of staff legally required to operate.
These measures come on top of broad workforce reductions initiated earlier this year under the Efficiency Department’s plan, which offered employees their salaries through September 30 if they agreed to leave their jobs. However, some agencies later attempted to rehire staff due to difficulties in carrying out essential functions.
It remains unclear whether the White House intends to use the potential shutdown as a way to advance Trump’s agenda of reducing the federal workforce, or if it is merely a negotiation tactic to pressure Democrats into approving the Republican funding bill.
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement Wednesday evening: “This is an attempt at intimidation. Donald Trump has been firing federal employees since day one — not to govern, but to frighten. This unnecessary dismissal will either be overturned in court or the administration will be forced to rehire them, just as it did recently.”
