A federal judge in California has temporarily halted the State Department’s restructuring plan, which was originally set to eliminate about 2,000 employees.
United States District Judge Susan Illston ruled during a hearing on Friday (June 13) that her order issued in May has suspended President Trump’s federal large-scale downsizing plan and applies equally to the State Department. As a result, the planned layoff notifications scheduled for Saturday (June 14) will be temporarily suspended.
The State Department, however, argues that their restructuring plan submitted to Congress in May preceded Trump’s February issuance of executive orders and related memoranda, therefore asserting that the State Department’s restructuring plan should be exempt from the court’s injunction.
The lawsuit was jointly brought by several labor unions, advocacy groups, and local governments, including the American Federation of Government Employees, Alliance for Retired Americans, American Public Health Association, Center for Taxpayer Rights, as well as multiple city governments in California, Illinois, Maryland, Texas, and Washington.
The plaintiffs allege that President Trump exceeded his constitutional authority by directing major agencies to implement large-scale layoffs without congressional approval. They also argue that the layoff measures have caused operational chaos within the agencies and have impacted critical services.
President Trump issued an executive order on February 11, announcing significant reforms to the federal bureaucracy, including substantial staff reductions to eliminate “waste, bloat, and inefficiency” within the government.
Following this, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) issued supporting memoranda in the same month, instructing agencies to submit detailed Reduction in Force (RIF) and restructuring plans.
Government lawyers stated that President Trump’s executive order and related memoranda only provide broad policy guidance, with specific implementation decisions left to the discretion of individual agencies.
Previously, Judge Illston issued a temporary restraining order on May 9, prohibiting federal agencies from executing mass layoffs based on the president’s orders. In her ruling, she wrote, “While federal courts should not micromanage the massive personnel operations of the federal government, there are times when courts must intervene to maintain a proper balance of power among the three branches.”
Quoting statements from a group of conservative former officials, she added, “Unlimited presidential power was not the founders’ original intent.”
During the last court session to consider upgrading the “temporary restraining order” to a “preliminary injunction,” Justice Department lawyers insisted that federal agencies have the authority to independently carry out layoffs while complying with existing regulations.
According to written documents submitted by the government on May 19, “Agencies may carry out layoff measures within existing authority, which is separate from the procedures outlined in the ‘Personnel Executive Order’ and ‘Personnel Memorandum’.”
However, Judge Illston disagreed with this assertion and issued a preliminary injunction, freezing the layoff actions of federal agencies. She reiterated that President Trump does not have the power to unilaterally push through a large-scale federal restructuring plan.
White House Deputy Press Secretary Harrison Fields criticized the ruling as “extreme judicial interference in the executive branch”.