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Federal Judge Rules Homeland Security Plan to Cut FEMA Staff in Half Unlawful
Confirmed
In Short: A federal judge has ruled that the Trump administration's directive for the Federal Emergency Management Agency to cut its workforce in half is unlawful, according to Fox News.
A federal judge has ruled that the Trump administration's directive for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to cut its workforce in half is unlawful, according to Fox News. The U.S. District Judge Susan Illston found that the Department of Homeland Security acted unlawfully by taking control of FEMA's authority over its own personnel and pushing the agency to slash thousands of disaster-response jobs.
Illston said the department violated the law last year when it sought to stop FEMA from renewing the temporary contracts of thousands of on-call reservists who respond to disasters, as reported by Fox News. The judge wrote that there is no evidence in the record reflecting reasoned decision-making for this about-face or for the subsequent conditions DHS placed on FEMA’s renewal authority.
The unions that sued argued that the planned cuts are unlawful because they would undermine FEMA's core disaster-response mission, were not approved by Congress, and were ordered by then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem instead of FEMA officials, according to Fox News. However, the judge noted that FEMA projected its staffing levels for the upcoming fiscal year at 11,383 employees, or about half of previous levels, without any basis for picking that figure.
The administration has contended that FEMA has considerable flexibility to determine proper staffing levels, but the judge's ruling suggests otherwise. The parties have until Oct. 9 to submit briefings on 'what relief remains outstanding' in this case, as reported by Fox News.
What's confirmed
- A federal judge has ruled that the Trump administration's directive for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to cut its workforce in half is unlawful, according to Fox News. The U.S. District Judge Susan Illston found that the Department of Homeland Security acted unlawfully by taking control of FEMA's authority over its own personnel and pushing the agency to slash thousands of disaster-response jobs.
- Illston said the department violated the law last year when it sought to stop FEMA from renewing the temporary contracts of thousands of on-call reservists who respond to disasters, as reported by Fox News. The judge wrote that there is no evidence in the record reflecting reasoned decision-making for this about-face or for the subsequent conditions DHS placed on FEMA’s renewal authority.
- The unions that sued argued that the planned cuts are unlawful because they would undermine FEMA's core disaster-response mission, were not approved by Congress, and were ordered by then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem instead of FEMA officials, according to Fox News. However, the judge noted that FEMA projected its staffing levels for the upcoming fiscal year at 11,383 employees, or about half of previous levels, without any basis for picking that figure.
- The administration has contended that FEMA has considerable flexibility to determine proper staffing levels, but the judge's ruling suggests otherwise. The parties have until Oct. 9 to submit briefings on 'what relief remains outstanding' in this case, as reported by Fox News.
What's still developing
- "Under President Trump and [DHS] Secretary [Markwayne] Mullin’s leadership, DHS and FEMA are ready for the 2026 hurricane season," a FEMA spokesperson said in a statement to The Hill.
- Illston said the messages would have been relevant to the lawsuit and that she would now presume "that the lost Signal messages would have been unfavorable to Defendants because they would have been further evidence" of unlawful conduct.
- AYESHA RASCOE, HOST: The Social Security Trust Fund is running out of reserves.
- According to the Social Security Trustees Report, if Congress doesn't act, payments are expected to be 22% lower starting at the end of 2032.
- Limited public discussion of the trust fund's shortfall has experts worried that most Americans don't fully understand the problems Social Security faces — or weigh in on solutions.
- This would be devastating for seniors who rely on their Social Security payments.
- LOPEZ: Fixing Social Security will likely involve cutting benefits for some Americans or raising taxes on higher earners.