A federal judge has ruled that a Homeland Security Department plan to cut staffing at the Federal Emergency Management Agency by 50% was unlawful, a victory for the labor groups that sued. The opinion, issued late Friday by U.S. District Judge Susan Illston, came in a much larger lawsuit filed by the American Federation of Government Employees and other labor groups challenging efforts by the administration of 
Donald Trump to slash the federal workforce, PBS NewsHour reported.
What did the judge find? Illston said in her opinion that top Homeland Security officials late last year directed FEMA's leadership to submit a staffing plan with a 50% cut even though the agency's own supervisors objected. "Frankly, the FEMA staffing plan number appears as if pulled from thin air," Illston said. She said the government clearly violated rules established after 2005's Hurricane Katrina that put staffing decisions squarely in FEMA's hands and prevented DHS from "substantially" reducing FEMA's "functions." The labor groups had said the plans, made under then-Secretary Kristi Noem, violated congressional protections of FEMA's independence.
How did the agencies respond? FEMA said in a statement late Saturday that it does not comment on personnel matters and ongoing litigation, but that "DHS and FEMA are ready for the 2026 hurricane season." The agency said it was ensuring "a strong, deployable force for upcoming national events and potential disasters." The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to requests for comment, PBS NewsHour reported.
What happens next? Illston did not order a specific remedy, instead directing the two sides to meet and decide on a course of relief. Although FEMA has experienced terminations, the 50% cuts ultimately were not carried out, and after top leadership changes at FEMA and the department in recent months, the agency has rehired some staffers who were let go.
What has happened to FEMA's workforce? FEMA was one of the agencies targeted for staff reductions under a broad administration plan to shrink the government, and it has been buffeted by mass staff departures, disruptions of grant programs and delays of disaster aid, PBS NewsHour reported. More than 4,300 employees, about 17% of its workforce, separated from the agency in the 2025 budget year. In May, a FEMA Review Council appointed by Trump submitted a final report that backed away from a 50% workforce cut included in a December 2025 draft the Associated Press reviewed, recommending instead a "strategic review" to determine "appropriate staffing levels."
Figures referenced: Donald Trump. — JudgeMarket.
