OMB memo directs agencies to plan RIF mass layoffs if funding lapses at Sept. 30 shutdown
An OMB memo from Director Russ Vought instructs agencies to prepare reduction‑in‑force (RIF) layoff plans — to be used in addition to furloughs — if funding lapses after Sept. 30, directing agencies to spare core benefits and national security functions (Social Security, Medicare, veterans’ benefits, military operations, law enforcement, ICE, CBP, air traffic control) while targeting items such as foreign aid, EV‑charging grants and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and emphasizing border security and defense priorities. The administration frames the guidance as pressure to pass a “clean” continuing resolution (H.R. 5371) through Nov. 21 and warns that as many as millions of federal workers could be affected (est. ~2.3 million), prompting Democratic leaders to call the move intimidation and drawing heated political backlash amid shutdown talks and proposals for large-scale personnel actions.
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🔍 Key Facts
- The Office of Management and Budget (OMB), in a memo authored by Director Russ Vought, directed federal agencies to prepare reduction‑in‑force (RIF) plans and to be ready to issue RIF notices — in addition to furloughs — if federal funding lapses after Sept. 30, 2025.
- The memo frames the planning as contingent on Congress failing to pass a “clean” continuing resolution (H.R. 5371, which the administration supports to extend funding through Nov. 21, 2025) and blames Senate Democrats for blocking it with what it calls “insane demands.”
- OMB’s guidance identifies core functions that would continue despite a shutdown (including Social Security, Medicare, veterans’ benefits, military operations, law enforcement, ICE, CBP and air traffic control) while directing agencies to target other programs for cuts or permanent layoffs; reporting cites specific potential targets such as foreign aid, EV‑charging funding and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
- The administration describes a two‑track approach and is preparing additional measures — including a reported “deferred resignation program” that could remove more than 100,000 federal employees — while media estimates suggest as many as about 2.3 million federal employees could be affected if a shutdown occurs.
- The memo and the White House’s stance prompted sharp political backlash: Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries called the moves intimidation, Sen. Chris Van Hollen likened them to “mafia‑style blackmail,” and other lawmakers warned of local and political consequences.
- Political context: President Trump canceled a planned meeting with Democratic leaders, Democrats resisted a short‑term stopgap deal, and commentators and officials described the memo as an escalation intended to pressure Democrats in the Sept. 30 funding standoff; a White House meeting on negotiations was scheduled amid the dispute.
- Lawmakers and commentators debated legal and practical implications: Sen. Rand Paul argued courts uphold presidential authority over executive hiring/firing and quantified objections to spending plans, while Sen. Tim Kaine highlighted the concrete local impact (about 140,000 federal civilian workers in Virginia) and urged that any funding commitments not be immediately rescinded.
- Multiple outlets (including PBS, CBS, NPR, Axios and Fox) obtained or published the OMB memo, corroborating its contents and confirming the administration’s intent to plan for possible mass layoffs as a lever in the shutdown fight.
📍 Contextual Background
- Social Security benefits are funded through mandatory spending, meaning the program's funding is provided without an annual expiration and does not require yearly appropriations to continue benefit payments.
- During a U.S. federal government shutdown, active-duty military personnel and deployed National Guard members must continue to perform their assigned duties but their pay is delayed until the shutdown ends.
- The Social Security Administration's contingency plans provide that in the event of a lapse in appropriations the agency will follow those plans and beneficiaries would continue receiving Social Security, Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments.
- The Government Employee Fair Treatment Act of 2019 provides that government employees automatically receive back pay after a government shutdown.
- Civilian personnel whose work the Department of Defense designates as 'excepted' continue to work during a government shutdown, while other Department of Defense civilian employees are furloughed.
- Congress enacted the Pay Our Military Act in 2013 to ensure military pay and allowances continued during a government shutdown.
- Department of Defense contingency guidance listed priority missions during a shutdown in the following order: operations to secure the U.S. Southern Border; Middle East operations; the U.S. missile defense project Golden Dome for America; depot maintenance; shipbuilding; and critical munitions.
📊 Analysis & Commentary (2)
Dems’ shutdown nightmare
"A POLITICO Playbook opinion piece warns that a newly reported OMB memo — which instructs agencies to prepare RIF layoff plans if a shutdown occurs — represents a serious escalation by the White House to use a shutdown as leverage, and argues Democrats should treat the threat as real rather than dismiss it."
A line-in-the-sand moment
"A Politico Playbook analysis frames the OMB memo ordering agencies to prepare mass‑layoff (RIF) notices ahead of the Sept. 30 funding deadline as a deliberate, high‑stakes 'line in the sand' gambit by the White House — a risky bit of brinkmanship that weaponizes personnel planning to force concessions and could produce significant political and operational blowback."
📰 Sources (12)
Shutdown fight casts a shadow over jobs as Trump prepares for largest federal resignation in US history
New information:
- Administration preparing a 'deferred resignation program' that would remove more than 100,000 federal employees (distinct from standard furloughs/RIFs).
- President Trump publicly said 'We may do a lot' when asked how many federal workers could be laid off, tying the program to the shutdown standoff.
- Reports that BLS commissioner Erika McEntarfer was fired after agency revisions to job‑growth data (May/June revisions downward) are cited in the context of the weak jobs readings.
A government shutdown looms. This time, the impact could last.
New information:
- Identifies and frames the immediate political standoff: Democrats refuse a short‑term deal and Senate leaders face limited leverage.
- Reports a scheduled White House meeting between President Trump and congressional leaders (Monday) tied to the shutdown negotiations.
- Provides on‑the‑record quotes from Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and strategist Rodell Mollineau about the political dynamics and perceived trap.
- Connects the OMB memo threat to broader recent actions (Supreme Court decision allowing certain cuts to proceed) to explain Democratic frustration and context.
Transcript: Sen. Tim Kaine on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan," Sept. 28, 2025
New information:
- Sen. Kaine cited the scale of federal employment in Virginia — ~140,000 federal civilian workers — as a concrete measure of potential local impact from RIFs and shutdown planning.
- Kaine criticized the White House approach, saying the President is 'already doing' firings and urging that commitments made in any funding deal not be immediately rescinded.
Transcript: Sen. Rand Paul on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan," Sept. 28, 2025
New information:
- Sen. Rand Paul publicly quantified his objections to both major spending proposals, saying the Republican plan 'adds about $2 trillion' and the Democratic plan 'would add $3 trillion.'
- Paul reports a Senate vote on his alternative 'penny plan' last week with a roll call: 36 Republicans supported it, 16 opposed, and no Democrats supported it — new specific vote counts tied to a spending alternative.
- Paul asserts courts have repeatedly upheld presidential authority over executive‑branch hiring/firing, framing likely legal outcomes if the administration pursues RIFs during a shutdown.
Schumer, Democrats face heat for shifting stance on government shutdown threat
New information:
- Fox News piece reiterates the OMB memo's political impact by including Schumer's and Thune's recent quotes reacting to it and connecting it to the current debate over Democratic support for stopgap funding.
- Provides contemporaneous political pushback framing (claims of hypocrisy) not previously quoted in the OMB-focused story.
Democrats dismiss White House's shutdown layoff threat as "intimidation"
New information:
- Direct, attributable quotes from House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries denouncing the memo as intimidation: 'We will not be intimidated by Russ Vought, who's completely and totally out of control.'
- Direct statement attribution to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer calling the memo 'an attempt at intimidation.'
- Political context details: Jeffries characterized the House GOP continuing resolution as 'dead on arrival' in the Senate and criticized House Republicans for leaving D.C.; noted President Trump canceled a requested meeting with Democratic leaders.
Read the full memo directing federal agencies to weigh mass layoffs if the government shuts down
New information:
- PBS obtained and published the full OMB memo sent to agency leadership and general counsels.
- The memo explicitly states that RIF (reduction‑in‑force) notices would be 'in addition to' furlough notices, meaning agencies could pursue permanent layoffs as well as temporary furloughs.
- The memo includes language blaming Democrats for inching toward a shutdown with 'insane demands' and instructs agencies to continue planning accordingly; PBS quotes the memo and includes context on negotiations and Schumer's response.
Senate progressive accuses Trump of ‘mafia-style blackmail’ in shutdown fight
New information:
- Sen. Chris Van Hollen publicly accused President Trump of 'mafia-style blackmail' in response to the OMB memo.
- Van Hollen explicitly compared the administration’s memo to earlier mass‑employment actions tied to Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency and vowed to 'fight back with every tool we have.'
- Contextual link to canceled White House meeting efforts and continuing negotiations ahead of the Sept. 30 funding deadline (article underscores political friction).
White House threatens layoffs -- not furloughs -- if the government shuts down
New information:
- NPR obtained a copy of an OMB memo spelling out the administration's plan to issue 'reduction in force' notices rather than furloughs if a shutdown occurs.
- The reporting names specific program targets mentioned in coverage of the drive to cut spending: foreign aid, electric‑vehicle charging station spending, and funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
- The article notes President Trump canceled a planned meeting with Democratic leaders and includes a direct quote from Sen. Chuck Schumer calling the memo 'an attempt at intimidation.'
White House raises specter of mass firings if government shuts down
New information:
- Identifies OMB Director Russ Vought as the author and quotes his memo wording urging preparedness for a shutdown.
- Describes a two-track approach: programs funded in the 'one big beautiful bill' and those focused on border security, immigration enforcement and national defense would be spared.
- Frames the move as an escalation intended to pressure Democrats by 'daring' them not to support a stopgap — includes context with reactions from Schumer and Jeffries.
White House tells agencies to prepare for layoffs if government shuts down
New information:
- The memo explicitly instructs agencies to consider reduction-in-force (RIF) notices for programs 'not consistent with the President's priorities.'
- An OMB official named programs that would continue regardless of a shutdown: Social Security, Medicare, veterans' benefits, military operations, law enforcement, ICE, CBP, and air traffic control.
- CBS obtained the memo and notes it urges a 'clean CR' and frames the planning as contingent on Democrats not triggering a shutdown.
- The article includes reactions and quotations from a former OMB official (Bobby Kogan) and congressional leaders (Sen. Chuck Schumer and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries).
White House tells federal agencies to prepare layoff plans as government shutdown looms
New information:
- OMB issued internal guidance telling agencies to draw up RIF (layoff) plans ahead of a possible funding lapse after Sept. 30, 2025.
- Article cites an estimate that about 2.3 million federal employees could be affected if a shutdown occurs.
- The memo references H.R. 5371 (a clean continuing resolution) that the administration supports to extend funding through Nov. 21, 2025, and accuses Senate Democrats of blocking it with 'insane demands, including $1 trillion in new spending.'