Federal Judge: Plan to Cut FEMA Workforce in Half Was Unlawful
A federal judge ruled that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) violated federal law when it ordered the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to develop a plan to cut its workforce in half.
The plan would have affected thousands of employees including members of FEMA’s Cadre of On-Call Response/Recovery (CORE) team, which make up about 40 percent of the FEMA workforce and generally serve two to four year terms.
Judge Susan Illston for the Northern District of California sided with federal employee unions who argued that the staffing cuts would violate the agency’s independence and hamper its ability to respond to disaster.
In her ruling, Judge Illston said the evidence showed that DHS supervisors overrode objections by FEMA supervisors to planned cuts, saying they acted “arbitrarily and capriciously.”
“Frankly, the FEMA staffing plan number appears as if pulled from thin air,” stated the ruling.
The judge also found that DHS overstepped when it revoked FEMA’s authority to renew appointments of its CORE team.
Administration Response
The ruling was criticized by Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, who was not in office at the time the plan was made. Nevertheless, Secretary Mullin says it’s about maintaining an efficient workforce.
“When some federal judge tries to come in and tell us how many people we have to have on staff, yet they're not in the building, they're not running the agency, is laughable. Stay in your lane, deal with the law,” said Secretary Mullin at a discussion on disaster relief efforts in Nebraska.
50 Percent Cut Was Never Implemented
The 50 percent staffing cuts were ultimately not carried out, and some agency staffers have been rehired. The final version of the FEMA Review Council Report also backed away from the 50 percent cut.
Still about 4,300 employees– 17 percent of FEMA’s workforce– separated from the agency in the 2025 budget year, with the agency making 2,900 new hires, according to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report.
Judge Illston directed both sides in the lawsuit to confer on options for resolution in this case.
