Trump’s $11 Billion Resignation Program: How the Trump Administration’s Downsizing of the Federal Workforce Cost American Taxpayers Billions
By Douglas S. Pasternak
The Trump administration has paid federal employees at least $11 billion – and likely much more – not to work.
This total reflects only the lower end of estimated costs for the Deferred Resignation Program (DRP) – inspired by Elon Musk in the Office of Personnel Management’s (OPM’s) infamous “Fork in the Road” email,[1] and it does not look at other federal efforts to reduce the number of federal workers.[2]
Nor does the total include the enormous social cost of leaving major government functions unfulfilled.
A Devastated Workforce
Since Donald Trump took office in January 2025, the federal workforce has declined by 278,282 individuals and 139,628 of those federal employees took part in the administration’s Deferred Resignation Program (DRP).[3]
The Deferred Resignation Program was initiated on January 28, 2025, with what came to be known as the “Fork in the Road” email, and those that participated were paid but exempted from work through September 30, 2025.[4] However, if you were eligible to retire by December 31, 2025, you could remain in the program and continue to get paid from October 1, 2025 until December 31, 2025, when you needed to separate from federal service.[5] A second DRP offer, known as DRP 2.0, began in April 2025 and paid employees through September 30, 2025, unless they planned to retire by the end of the year and could then be paid up until December 31, 2025, when they separated from federal service. The result was that nearly 140,000 federal workers were paid not to work for weeks or, in most cases, months.
Based on OPM data, Public Citizen estimates that paying federal employees in the DRP not to work cost between $11.1 billion and $15.1 billion through March 2026, the last month OPM posted publicly available data. The variables and assumptions Public Citizen made in estimating the range of costs due to the Deferred Resignation Program are detailed in our methodology section and two charts included at the end of this report.[6]
To put the cost spent on requiring federal employees to stay home and not to work prior to separating from federal service into perspective, the chart below shows several examples of what $11.1 billion could have been used to purchase, rather than paying employees not to work.
Table 1: What $11.1 Billion Could Purchase
| Activity | Unit Cost | What $11.1 Billion Could Purchase |
|---|---|---|
| School Breakfasts | $1.91 per breakfast | 5.8 billion school breakfasts |
| School Lunches | $3.08 per lunch | 3.6 billion school lunches |
| Annual Daycare (full year, per child) | $13,262 per child per year | A full year of daycare for more than 837,000 children |
| Infant Childcare (monthly) | $1,233 per month | 9 million months of infant childcare |
| Annual Family Health Care Premiums | $26,056 per family per year | Premium annual health care payments for 426,000 families |
| Annual Individual Health Care Premiums | $9,250 per individual per year | Premium annual health care payments for 1.2 million individuals |
| Public School Teacher (annual salary) | $74,496 average annual salary | Annual salary for more than 149,000 public school teachers |
| Annual Apartment Rent | $23,989 per year ($1,999/month) | Annual rent for 462,500 apartments |
| Annual In-State College Tuition (public 4-year university) | $11,960 per year | Annual in-state tuition for more than 928,000 students |
Public Citizen’s analysis of OPM data concluded:
- The Trump administration paid nearly 140,000 federal employees who took part in the Deferred Resignation Program at least $11 billion to stop working for the American public and to stay home or take vacation until they separated from federal service.[16]
- More than 106,000 federal employees separated from federal service in September 2025 under the Deferred Resignation Program, and an additional 24,000 employees in the DRP left federal service by the end of December 2025.[17]
- As a result of the DRP, the Department of Defense lost more than 48,000 civilian employees last year, the Department of Treasury lost 23,000 federal employees, and the Department of Agriculture more than 14,500 employees.[18]
- Several federal court cases ruled that some of the Trump administration’s layoffs were illegal and demanded that terminated employees at the Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Energy, Interior, Labor, and other agencies return to work. However, there are a multitude of ongoing court cases and some of those initial court decisions have been overruled in federal appeals courts.[19]
- At least 10 federal agencies were forced to rehire employees that had chosen to take part in the Deferred Resignation Program because they realized these employees were essential to the agency’s Congressionally mandated work on behalf of all Americans.
The costs of paying federal workers not to work will continue to rise. Since the beginning of 2026, several agencies have offered new rounds of the Deferred Resignation Program permitting federal employees to stop working, but to stay on the federal payroll through September 2026, adding even more to the burgeoning financial cost of this billion-dollar resignation program.
Although the DRP was supposed to officially conclude in the first half of FY2026 (April 2026), the Department of Interior, for instance, recently extended its program offering federal employees who stopped working by April 29, 2026, to be placed on paid administrative leave through September 2026.[20] Those costs are not included in Public Citizen’s calculations because the data is not yet available from OPM.
Other agencies and federal departments are also following suit and beginning a new round of staff cuts under the Deferred Resignation Program. The Department of Treasury’s Office of Financial Research, which has already shed half of its workforce since last year now intends to offer more employees the chance to enroll in the DRP beginning in mid-May 2026 and remain on paid leave through September 2026 before departing the agency, according to a report in Government Executive.[21] In February 2026, the U.S. Agency for Global Media also offered its staff a similar offer as long as employees accepted the termination offer by March 9, 2026.[22]
The costs of this exercise in downsizing continue to mount, and are replete with examples of poor planning, mismanagement, and financial inefficiencies and waste. The total costs of these terminations also include more than simply paying workers to stop working, they have had ripple effects throughout the government and on the American public.
Fired, Rehired, and Just Plain Bungled
Nothing about the Trump administration’s mass layoffs has advanced “efficiency.”
In many cases, the Trump administration rescinded the terminations and resignations of federal employees in the DRP and other programs in what appears to be systemic incompetence because the administration did not seem to understand the value or critical role of these employees in keeping the departments and offices they had worked for running. The Department of Labor,[23] Internal Revenue Service (IRS),[24] Food and Drug Administration (FDA),[25] Department of Agriculture,[26] the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS),[27] Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),[28] Defense Information Services Agency (DISA),[29] the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),[30] the General Services Administration (GSA),[31] and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH),[32] all rehired workers who had been terminated or resigned after the agencies realized their critical missteps in arbitrarily dismissing tens of thousands of essential federal employees, after OPM told federal workers that if they took part in the Deferred Resignation Program they could stay home, relax, or travel to their “dream destination” while receiving their federal salaries and benefits.[33]
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has conducted several analyses focused on the Department of Education, General Services Administration, and Internal Revenue Service related to the administration’s mass firings and resignations, including the Deferred Resignation Program, that clearly shows the process was neither strategic, smart, nor financially efficient.[34]
Terminal Impact
Failing to have adequate staffing in the government imposes massive costs on society. The Partnership for Public Service, for instance, recently calculated that the total economic costs regarding all federal workforce reductions, including legal fees and reductions in national park entrance fees, for instance, was nearly $71 billion.[35]
The single biggest cost may be lost revenues due to cutbacks at the Internal Revenue Service, where staffing fell 25% from January to May 2025.[36] The Budget Lab at Yale University estimated that a 22% reduction in IRS staffing levels would result in a $197.7 billion loss over a 10-year period, the overwhelming majority of which will come from top earners who will escape paying what they owe.[37]
Mass scale federal staff reductions are likely to have serious impacts on Americans across the country in a wide range of arenas.[38] The public’s health[39] and our nation’s prowess as a leader in science,[40] technology,[41] and innovation[42] will undoubtedly be impacted as a result. Processing Social Security checks,[43] Internal Revenue Service refunds,[44] and federal student loans[45] have already been severely affected. Ironically, federal employees who have chosen to retire in the past year have also experienced months of delays in obtaining benefits due to the reduction of more than 1,000 employees at the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) since January 2025.[46] In other vital areas, such as the nation’s national defense and intelligence community,[47] as well as the Department of Justice (DOJ),[48] and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI),[49] experts are worried about these mass reductions in force and loss of critical experience and expertise.
The Veterans Administration (VA), which has suffered from decades of problematic performance, has also been impacted as a result of recent resignations.[50] More than 8,500 VA employees took part in the DRP, according to data from OPM, which led to reported disruptions in obtaining medical appointments and mental health services for the more than 9 million veterans the agency serves.[51]
At the Department of Agriculture, more than 24,000 employees have left since Trump took office in January 2025. The Forest Service lost 32% of its workforce, the Agricultural Research Service lost 30% of its workforce, and the Food and Nutrition Service lost 31% of its workforce.[52] The Food and Nutrition Service, which manages the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) programs lost more than 500 staff or 31%, of its workforce, dropping from 1,750 to 1,200 employees.[53] More than 74% of those who left the Department of Agriculture, or roughly 15,000 employees, resigned through the Deferred Resignation Program.[54]
Scholars and experts have also pointed to both the short term and long-term negative consequences of the Trump administration’s rash decisions. Kate Wehle, argued in a piece titled: “Wildfires: A Burning Threat Under Trump 2.0,” published in May 2025 by the University of Chicago, that the Trump administration’s mass layoffs will particularly impact the ability to manage and fight wildfires. Her analysis says that the “Forest Service’s wildfire policies are currently being exacerbated by the hiring freeze, mass layoffs, deferred resignation program, and (proposed) elimination of regional offices under the Trump administration.”[55] About 2,000 Forest Service employees were fired last year, increasing the chances of more destructive fires and diminishing the safety of firefighters, residents, and business owners impacted by potential wildfires as a result. [56]
Others have pointed out that cuts to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will impede federal and local responses to natural disasters, jeopardizing the health and safety of local residents, needlessly resulting in increased injuries and potentially avoidable deaths.[57]
At the National Park Service more than 2,400 employees were fired[58] and more than 1,100 reportedly took part in the Deferred Resignation Program.[59] Last year, the Associated Press reported that park “advocates warned that the cuts could mean shorter visitor-center hours, delayed openings, closed campgrounds, uncollected trash, dirty restrooms, reduced guided tours, and increased public-safety risk.”[60] And in April 2026 the Department of Interior, which includes the National Park Service, said it was planning to eliminate another 2,000 positions offering those that voluntarily accepted an opportunity to enroll in the Deferred Resignation Program to stay at home and not work until they separated from federal service while the American taxpayer paid their salaries.[61]
Conclusion
Donald Trump has often spoken about cutting waste and making the government more efficient. Yet his massive federal layoffs and resignation programs have been the epitome of inefficiency and have resulted in billions of dollars in wasted federal funds.
The administration’s inept and inefficient reductions in force policies are likely to be textbook examples of mismanagement in future business school classes. The American taxpayer has paid a significant financial price for the administration’s questionable actions and the long-term impact of these actions on virtually every facet of American life may be felt for years to come. The Trump administration’s efforts to reduce the federal workforce have left the American public holding the financial bag of billions of dollars in wasted expenses and a clear lesson in inefficient management.
Methodology
Public Citizen used the Office of Personnel Management’s new Table Builder[62] feature to download data from January 2025 to March 2026, the most recent data available from OPM, in the following categories:
All federal agencies. The charts we created include data on the 24 federal Chief Financial Officers (CFO) Act agencies, representing the largest agencies in the U.S. government. We combined the non-CFO Act agencies into one single row in both charts we constructed.
Separations from federal service. The OPM data has a “separations” category that permits you to further narrow this criteria by highlighting a “DRP indicator,” enabling you to identify all federal employees that separated from federal service via the Deferred Resignation Program, which placed federal employees on paid administrative leave until they departed federal service.
Personnel action effective date. The “effective date” is the date the employee separated from federal service. Public Citizen sorted the “personnel action effective date” of federal employees who participated in the DRP by month from February 2025 to March 2026. The DRP was initiated on January 28, 2025, and only six civilian DOD employees were listed as entering the program in January 2025, so Public Citizen’s charts begin in February 2025 when those in the DRP began to separate from their federal employment.
Average salary. The OPM feature also provided the average salary for each agency, providing a more realistic cost estimate than using the overall federal salary average.
Although the OPM data includes information on the month each federal employee separated from federal service under the Deferred Resignation Program it does not include the date federal workers entered the program making it impossible to precisely calculate how much the federal government spent on the DRP as a result of paying federal employees not to work.
During the first wave of DRP offers, federal employees had to opt-in to the program by February 12, 2026, and they needed to separate from federal service by September 30, 2025, unless they were eligible for retirement by December 31, 2025.
During the second wave of DRP offers that were initiated in April 2025, federal agencies had slight variations in when their employees could enter the program. For the Department of Defense (DOD), for instance, employees that opted in to the program in April 2025 could not begin taking administrative leave until May 1, 2025. Public Citizen accounted for this in our cost calculations on the charts below.
In addition, the National Aeronautics & Space Administration (NASA) offered a DRP that began in July 2025 and permitted employees to separate from federal service in early January 2026.[63] NASA had 1,833 employees in the DRP separate from federal service in January 2026, according to the OPM data. In its cost calculation, Public Citizen assumed these individuals had all opted-in to the program in July 2025 and were on paid administrative leave from July 2025 to the beginning of January 2026.
Some federal agencies also initiated a third wave of DRP resignations in late 2025 and early 2026. The Department of Transportation (DOT), for example, offered enrollment in a DRP 3.0 program beginning in mid-December 2025 that ended on March 31, 2026, but only for federal workers in its Maritime Administration and Office of Civil Rights.[64] The OPM data shows 12 DOT employees in the DRP separated from federal service in March 2026. In order to not overcount the costs paid to federal workers we assumed that all separations from federal service under the DRP that took place in 2026 were part of this third wave of resignations, with the exception of the NASA employees who separated in January 2026. Therefore, if an individual separated in January 2026, we only calculated one month of pay for that individual. If they departed in March 2026, we calculated three months of paid administrative leave for January, February, and March 2026, for example.
None of these calculations can be exact without knowing the precise date that individuals began and ended paid administrative leave. The Office of Personnel Management has not provided data on when DRP federal workers entered the program, only when they separated from federal service. However, the data we do have provides a reliable rough estimate on the costs to the U.S. government as a result of the Deferred Resignation Program.
Public Citizen created two separate charts.
The first table, with the caveats mentioned above, assumed that all federal employees, except for those who departed federal service in 2026, entered the DRP in February 2025. To calculate the costs paid to individuals in the DRP we slated February as month #1, March as month #2, etc., and multiplied the average monthly salary for each federal agency by the # of months federal employees were in the program prior to their separation from federal service, and multiplied that # by the # of federal employees that separated from federal service each month.
We followed the same calculations for the second table but assumed all of the federal workers opted in to the second round of DRP offers that began in April 2025, except for DOD civilian employees who were not permitted to be placed on paid administrative leave until May 2025. In this chart we listed April 2025 as month #1, May as month #2, etc. For the months of February and March 2025, we listed those as month #1 and month #2, since the federal workers that separated in February or March under the DRP had to have entered into the program prior to the April 2025 second wave of DRP offers.
In addition, the first chart indicates that the total cost to the U.S. government in salaries and benefits to those employees who opted in to the DRP and did not work until their separation from federal service was $15.1 billion, which includes a 38% adjustment for federal benefits.[65] The salary cost alone was $10.9 billion. The second chart shows the salary costs alone were more than $8 billion, with a total cost of $11.1 billion, including salaries and the 38% benefits factor.
Table 2: Federal Deferred Resignation Program (DRP) – Estimated Cost (Assuming February 2025 Majority Entrance into DRP)
FORMULA: Monthly salary × # of DRP separations each month × # of months employees were in the DRP prior to separation.
ASSUMPTIONS & CAVEATS: This chart assumes the vast majority of federal employees entered the DRP in the first wave of DRP offers, in February 2025. NASA offered a unique DRP that commenced in July 2025 and ended in January 2026. NASA offered a unique second wave DRP offer that commenced in July 2025 and ended in January 2026. All January 2026 NASA departures are assumed to have entered the DRP in July 2025. All other 2026 departures from all other agencies are assumed to have taken part in a third wave of DRP offers starting in January 2026.
February 2025 = Round 1 (Month×1) | December 2025 = Round 1 (Month×11) | NASA: January 2026 = Round 2 (Month×6) (NASA employees in NASA’s second wave DRP enrolled in July 2025 and separated from federal service on January 9, 2026)
SOURCE: OPM Table Builder based on OPM Enterprise Human Resources Integration (EHRI) data, https://data.opm.gov/explore-data/data/table-builder. Data downloaded on May 14, 2026.
| FEDERAL AGENCY | Feb. 2025 (x1) | Mar. 2025 (x2) | Apr. 2025 (x3) | May 2025 (x4) | Jun. 2025 (x5) | Jul. 2025 (x6) | Aug. 2025 (x7) | Sep. 2025 (x8) | Oct. 2025 (x9) | Nov. 2025 (x10) | Dec. 2025 (x11) | Jan. 2026 NASA (x6) Other (x1) | Feb. 2026 NASA (x2) Other (x2) | Mar. 2026 NASA (x3) Other (x3) | TOTAL (No Benefits) | TOTAL (=38% Benefits) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DEFENSE (DOD) (# DRP separations) | 9 | 57 | 50 | 112 | 169 | 180 | 418 | 37,151 | 154 | 152 | 9,870 | 13 | 3 | 32 | 48,370 | |
| Annual Salary: $102,824 (Month = $8,569) | $77K | $977K | $1.3 million | $3.8 million | $7.2 million | $9.2 million | $25.1 million | $2.5 billion | $11.9 million | $13.0 million | $930.3 million | $111K | $51K | $823K | $3.6 billion | $4.9 billion |
| TREASURY DEPT. (# DRP separations) | 8 | 9 | 77 | 77 | 58 | 117 | 21,308 | 118 | 96 | 1,149 | 5 | 23,022 | ||||
| Annual Salary: $92,671 (Month = $7,723) | $124K | $209K | $2.4 million | $2.9 million | $2.7 million | $6.3 million | $1.3 billion | $8.2 million | $7.4 million | $97.6 million | $39K | $1.4 billion | $1.9 billion | |||
| AGRICULTURE DEPT. (# DRP separations) | 10 | 20 | 92 | 63 | 73 | 153 | 13,821 | 92 | 75 | 160 | 4 | 3 | 14,566 | |||
| Annual Salary: $95,695 (Month = $7.975) | $159K | $478K | $2.9 million | $2.5 million | $3.5 million | $8.5 million | $881.7 million | $6.6 million | $6.0 million | $14.0 million | $32K | $48K | $927 million | $1.3 billion | ||
| VETERANS AFFAIRS (VA) (# DRP separations) | 5 | 3 | 1 | 19 | 28 | 19 | 69 | 8,046 | 36 | 19 | 334 | 3 | 2 | 8,584 | ||
| Annual Salary: $99,601 (Month = $8,300) | $42K | $50K | $25K | $631K | $1.2 million | $946K | $4.0 million | $534.2 million | $2.7 million | $1.6 million | $30.5 million | $25K | $50K | $576 million | $794.8 million | |
| HOMELAND SECURITY (DHS) (# DRP separations) | 1 | 8 | 23 | 50 | 33 | 32 | 33 | 2,359 | 2,094 | 48 | 319 | 50 | 5 | 1 | 5,056 | |
| Annual Salary: $138,888 (Month = $11,574) | $12K | $185K | $799K | $2.3 million | $1.9 million | $2.2 million | $2.7 million | $218.4 million | $218.1 million | $5.5 million | $40.6 million | $579K | $116K | $35K | $493.6 million | $681.1 million |
| INTERIOR DEPT. (# DRP separations) | 3 | 12 | 7 | 22 | 22 | 45 | 44 | 3,032 | 10 | 20 | 3,151 | 2 | 1 | 6,371 | ||
| Annual Salary: $109,133 (Month = $9,094) | $27K | $218K | $191K | $800K | $1.0 million | $2.4 million | $2.8 million | $220.6 million | $818K | $1.8 million | $315.2 million | $18K | $18K | $546 million | $753.5 million | |
| JUSTICE (DOJ) (# DRP separations) | 9 | 6 | 15 | 19 | 27 | 51 | 2,810 | 25 | 17 | 46 | 3,025 | |||||
| Annual Salary: $152,994 (Month = $12,750) | $229K | $229K | $765K | $1.2 million | $2.1 million | $4.5 million | $286.6 million | $2.8 million | $2.2 million | $6.5 million | $307.1 million | $423.9 million | ||||
| TRANSPORTATION (DOT) (# DRP separations) | 3 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 8 | 10 | 17 | 3,398 | 20 | 10 | 561 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 4,052 | |
| Annual Salary: $144,815 (Month = $12,068 | $36K | $48K | $145K | $241K | $483K | $724K | $1.4 million | $328.1 million | $2.2 million | $1.2 million | $74.5 million | $12K | $24K | $434K | $409.5 million | $565.1 million |
| HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES (HHS) (# DRP separations) | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 11 | 1,202 | 16 | 6 | 219 | 1 | 1,468 | |||
| Annual Salary: $144,693 (Month = $12,058) | $36K | $24K | $36K | $145K | $121K | $217K | $928K | $115.9 million | $1.7 million | $723K | $29.0 million | $24K | $149.0 million | $205.6 million | ||
| ENERGY (DOE) (# DRP separations) | 2 | 2 | 5 | 12 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 1,512 | 69 | 11 | 123 | 115 | 1,868 | |||
| Annual Salary: $131,350 (Month = $10,946) | $22K | $44K | $164K | $525K | $219K | $394K | $536K | $132.4 million | $6.8 million | $1.2 million | $14.8 million | $1.3 million | $158.3 million | $218.6 million | ||
| COMMERCE DEPT. (# DRP separations) | 2 | 6 | 4 | 10 | 5 | 7 | 24 | 1,136 | 12 | 9 | 319 | 1,534 | ||||
| Annual Salary: $139,761 (Month = $11,647) | $23K | $140K | $140K | $466K | $291K | $489K | $1.9 million | $105.8 million | $1.3 million | $1.0 million | $40.1 million | $152.5 million | $210.5 million | |||
| GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION (GSA) (# DRP separations) | 5 | 6 | 13 | 11 | 1 | 5 | 8 | 1,872 | 9 | 11 | 2,227 | 2 | 2 | 4,172 | ||
| Annual Salary: $134,022 (Month = $11,168) | $56K | $134K | $436K | $491K | $56K | $335K | $625K | $167.3 million | $905K | $1.2 million | $273.6 million | $22K | $67K | $445.2 million | $614.4 million | |
| LABOR DEPT. (# DRP separations) | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 8 | 1,042 | 17 | 7 | 862 | 1,944 | ||||||
| Annual Salary $145,886 (Month = $12,157) | $36K | $49K | $122K | $292K | $681K | $101.3 million | $1.9 million | $851K | $115.3 million | $220.5 million | $304.3 million | |||||
| ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (EPA) (# DRP separations) | 2 | 3 | 3 | 9 | 7 | 15 | 709 | 5 | 124 | 1,751 | 3 | 2,631 | ||||
| Annual Salary: $146,015 (Month = $12,168) | $24K | $109K | $146K | $548K | $511K | $1.3 million | $69.0 million | $548K | $15.1 million | $234.4 million | $37K | $321.7 million | $443.9 million | |||
| NATIONAL AERONAUTICS & SPACE ADMINISTRATION (NASA) (# DRP separations) | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 10 | 22 | 379 | 13 | 23 | 1,083 | 1,833 | 5 | 11 | 3,387 | ||
| Annual Salary: $185,410 (Month = $15,451) | $15K | $139K | $62K | $232K | $927K | $2.4 million | $46.8 million | $1.8 million | $3.5 million | $184.1 million | $169.9 million | $155K | $510K | $410.6 million | $566.7 million | |
| SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION (SBA) (# DRP separations) | 1 | 17 | 13 | 39 | 35 | 10 | 55 | 1,178 | 6 | 5 | 242 | 6 | 1,607 | |||
| Annual Salary: $98,291 (Month = $8,191) | $8K | $278K | $319K | $1.3 million | $1.4 million | $491K | $3.1 million | $77.2 million | $442K | $410K | $21.8 million | $49K | $106.9 million | $147.5 million | ||
| SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION (SSA) (# DRP separations) | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 598 | 2 | 5 | 179 | 2 | 807 | |||||
| Annual Salary: $144,455 (Month = $12,038) | $181K | $193K | $181K | $217K | $506K | $57.6 million | $217K | $602K | $23.7 million | $24K | $83.4 million | $115.1 million | ||||
| STATE DEPT. (# DRP separations) | 1 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 472 | 1 | 494 | ||||||||
| Annual Salary: $133,834 (Month = $11,153) | $33K | $134K | $167K | $468K | $546K | $42.1 million | $123K | $43.6 million | $60.1 million | |||||||
| HOUSING & URBAN DEVELOPMENT (HUD) (# DRP separations) | 2 | 2 | 7 | 18 | 60 | 7 | 24 | 1,860 | 6 | 12 | 298 | 2,296 | ||||
| Annual Salary: $138,042 (Month = $11,504) | $23K | $46K | $242K | $828K | $3.5 million | $483K | $1.9 million | $171.2 million | $621K | $1.4 million | $37.8 million | $217.9 million | $300.7 million | |||
| EDUCATION DEPT. (# DRP separations) | 3 | 151 | 1 | 1 | 67 | 2 | 225 | |||||||||
| Annual Salary: $150,539 (Month = $12,545) | $263K | $15.2 million | $113K | $125K | $9.2 million | $25K | $24.9 million | $34.4 million | ||||||||
| NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION (NRC) (# DRP separations) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 19 | 1 | 1 | 92 | 117 | ||||||||
| Annual Salary: $175,230 (Month = $14,602) | $88K | $88K | $102K | $2.2 million | $131K | $146K | $14.7 million | $17.6 million | $24.2 million | |||||||
| NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION (NSF) (# DRP separations) | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 270 | 48 | 331 | ||||||||
| Annual Salary: $166,936 (Month = $13,911) | $28K | $83K | $139K | $250K | $487K | $30.0 million | $7.3 million | $38.4 million | $53.0 million | |||||||
| OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT (OPM) (# DRP separations) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 424 | 4 | 5 | 273 | 2 | 2 | 734 | ||
| Annual Salary: $133,253 (Month = $11,104) | $11K | $22K | $33K | $489K | $111K | $200K | $389K | $37.6 million | $400K | $555K | $33.3 million | $22K | $67K | $73.3 million | $101.2 million | |
| U.S. AGENCY FOR INTENRATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (USAID) (# DRP separations) | 1 | 3 | 5 | 158 | 1 | 1 | 62 | 1 | 232 | |||||||
| Annual Salary: $168,557 (Month = $14,046) | $56K | $253K | $492K | $17.8 million | $126K | $140K | $9.6 million | $42K | $28.4 million | $39.3 million | ||||||
| ALL NON-CFO ACT AGENCIES (Combined) (# DRP separations) | 1 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 12 | 19 | 1,832 | 19 | 15 | 741 | 10 | 4 | 45 | 2,717 | |
| Annual Salary: $112,456 (Month = $9,371) | $9K | $112K | $84K | $187K | $234K | $675K | $1.2 million | $137.3 million | $1.6 million | $1.4 million | $76.4 million | $94K | $75K | $1.3 million | $220.7 million | $304.6 million |
| TOTAL DRP EMPLOYEES | 41 | 151 | 184 | 514 | 555 | 535 | 1,127 | 106,739 | 2,730 | 673 | 24,177 | 2,053 | 23 | 108 | 139,610 | |
| TOTAL DRP COST | $422K | $2.8 million | $5.5 million | $18.9 million | $25.8 million | $30.1 million | $72.9 million | $7.7 billion | $271.9 million | $67.2 million | $2.6 billion | $172.2 million | $511K | $3.3 million | $11.0 billion | $15.1 billion |
| TOTAL COST + 38% BENEFITS FACTOR (All Agencies) | $583K | $3.9 million | $7.6 million | $26.1 million | $35.6 million | $41.6 million | $100.6 million | $10.6 billion | $375.2 million | $92.7 million | $3.6 billion | $237.7 million | $705K | $4.5 million | $15.1 billion | +38% Benefits Applied |
Table 3: Federal Deferred Resignation Program (DRP) – Estimated Cost (Assuming April 2025 Majority Entrance into DRP)
FORMULA: Monthly salary × # of DRP separations each month × # of months employees were in the DRP prior to separation.
ASSUMPTIONS & CAVEATS: This chart assumes the vast majority of federal employees entered the DRP in the second wave of DRP offers, in April 2025. Federal employees who separated from federal service in February or March 2025 are assumed to have been part of the first DRP wave | DOD employees who separated from federal service in April 2025 are also considered part of the first DRP wave, since the DOD second wave did not commence until May 2025 | All other DRP enrollees, except DOD employees, are assumed to have entered the second DRP wave in April 2025 | In addition, NASA offered a unique DRP that commenced in July 2025 and ended in January 2026. All January 2026 NASA departures are assumed to have entered the DRP in July 2025. All other 2026 departures from all other agencies are assumed to have taken part in a third wave of DRP offers starting in January 2026.
February & March 2025 = Round 1 (Month×1, Month×2) | April 2025 = Round 2 (Month×1) | DoD: May 2025 = Round 2 (Month×1) since DoD DRP administrative leave did not begin until May 2025 | NASA: January 2026 = Round 2 (Month×6) (NASA employees in NASA’s second wave DRP enrolled in July 2025 and separated from federal service on January 9, 2026)
SOURCE: OPM Table Builder based on OPM Enterprise Human Resources Integration (EHRI) data, https://data.opm.gov/explore-data/data/table-builder. Data downloaded on May 14, 2026.
| FEDERAL AGENCY | Feb. 2025 Round 1 (x1) | Mar. 2025 Round 1 (x2) | Apr. 2025 Round 2 (x1) DOD Round 1 (x3) | May 2025 Round 2 (x2) DOD Round 2 (x1) | Jun. 2025 Round 2 (x3) DOD Round 2 (x2) | Jul. 2025 Round 2 (x4) DOD Round 2 (x3) | Aug. 2025 Round 2 (x5) DOD Round 2 (x4) | Sep. 2025 Round 2 (x6) DOD Round 2 (x5) | Oct. 2025 Round 2 (x7) DOD Round 2 (x6) | Nov. 2025 Round 2 (x8) DOD Round 2 (x7) | Dec. 2025 Round 2 (x9) DOD Round 2 (x8) | Jan. 2026 Round 3 (x1) NASA Round 2 (x6) | Feb. 2026 Round 3 (x2) NASA Round 3 (x2) | Mar. 2026 Round 3 (x3) NASA Round 3 (x3) | TOTAL | TOTAL | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DEFENSE DEPT. (DOD) (# DRP separations) | 9 | 57 | 50 | 112 | 169 | 180 | 418 | 37,151 | 154 | 152 | 9,870 | 13 | 3 | 32 | 48,370 | ||
| Annual Salary: $102,824 (Month = $8,569) | $77K | $977K | $1.3 million | $960K | $2.9 million | $4.6 million | $14.3 million | $1.6 billion | $8.0 million | $9.1 million | $677 million | $111K | $51K | $823K | $2.3 billion | $3.2 billion | |
| TREASURY DEPT. (# DRP separations) | 8 | 9 | 77 | 77 | 58 | 117 | 21,308 | 118 | 96 | 1,149 | 5 | 23,022 | |||||
| Annual Salary: $92,671 (Month = $7,723) | — | $124K | $70K | $1.2 million | $1.8 million | $1.8 million | $4.5 million | $987 million | $6.4 million | $6.0 million | $79.9 million | $39K | — | — | $1.1 billion | $1.5 billion | |
| AGRICULTURE DEPT. (# DRP separations) | 10 | 20 | 92 | 63 | 73 | 153 | 13,821 | 92 | 75 | 160 | 4 | 3 | 14,566 | ||||
| Annual Salary: $95,695 (Month = $7,975) | — | $159K | $159K | $1.5 million | $1.5 million | $2.3 million | $6.1 million | $661.3 million | $5.1 million | $4.8 million | $11.4 million | $32K | $48K | — | $694.5 million | $958.4 million | |
| VETERANS AFFAIRS (VA) (# DRP separations) | 5 | 3 | 1 | 19 | 28 | 19 | 69 | 8,046 | 36 | 19 | 334 | 3 | 2 | 8,584 | |||
| Annual Salary: $99,601 (Month = $8,300) | $42K | $50K | $8K | $315K | $697K | $631K | $2.9 million | $400.7 million | $2.1 million | $1.3 million | $24.9 million | $25K | — | $50K | $433.7 million | $598.5 million | |
| HOMELAND SECURITY (DHS) (# DRP separations) | 1 | 8 | 23 | 50 | 33 | 32 | 33 | 2,359 | 2,094 | 48 | 319 | 50 | 5 | 1 | 5,056 | ||
| Annual Salary: $138,888 (Month = $11,574) | $12K | $185K | $266K | $1.2 million | $1.1 million | $1.5 million | $1.9 million | $163.8 million | $169.7 million | $4.4 million | $33.2 million | $579K | $116K | $35K | $378 million | $521.2 million | |
| INTERIOR DEPT. (# DRP separations) | 3 | 12 | 7 | 22 | 22 | 45 | 44 | 3,032 | 10 | 20 | 3,151 | 2 | 1 | 6,371 | |||
| Annual Salary: $109,133 (Month = $9,094) | $27K | $218K | $64K | $400K | $600K | $1.6 million | $2.0 million | $165.4 million | $636.6 million | $1.5 million | $257.9 million | $18K | $18K | — | $430.4 million | $594 million | |
| JUSTICE DEPT. (DOJ) (# DRP separations) | 9 | 6 | 15 | 19 | 27 | 51 | 2,810 | 25 | 17 | 46 | 3,025 | ||||||
| Annual Salary: $152,994 (Month = $12,750) | — | $229K | $76K | $382K | $727K | $1.4 million | $3.3 million | $215 million | $2.2 million | $1.7 million | $5.3 million | — | — | — | $230.2 million | $317.7 million | |
| TRANSPORTATION (# DRP separations) | 3 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 8 | 10 | 17 | 3,398 | 20 | 10 | 561 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 4,052 | ||
| Annual Salary: $144,815 (Month = $12,068) | $36K | $48K | $48K | $121K | $290K | $483K | $1.0 million | $246 million | $1.7 million | $965K | $60.9 million | $12K | $24K | $434K | $312.1 million | $430.7 million | |
| HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES (HHS) (# DRP separations) | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 11 | 1,202 | 16 | 6 | 219 | 1 | 1,468 | ||||
| Annual Salary: $144,693 (Month = $12,058) | $36K | $24K | $12K | $72K | $72K | $145K | $663K | $87 million | $1.4 million | $579K | $23.8 million | — | $24K | — | $113.7 million | $156.9 million | |
| ENERGY DEPT. (DOE) (# DRP separations) | 2 | 2 | 5 | 12 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 1,512 | 69 | 11 | 123 | 115 | 1,868 | ||||
| Annual Salary: $131,350 (Month = $10,946) | $22K | $44K | $55K | $263K | $131K | $263K | $383K | $99.3 million | $5.3 million | $963K | $12.1 million | $1.3 million | — | — | $120.1 million | $165.7 million | |
| COMMERCE DEPT. (# DRP separations) | 2 | 6 | 4 | 10 | 5 | 7 | 24 | 1,136 | 12 | 9 | 319 | 1,534 | |||||
| Annual Salary: $139,761 (Month = $11,647) | $23K | $140K | $47K | $233K | $175K | $326K | $1.4 million | $79.4 million | $978K | $839K | $33.4 million | — | — | — | $117 million | $161.4 million | |
| GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION (GSA) (# DRP separations) | 5 | 6 | 13 | 11 | 1 | 5 | 8 | 1,872 | 9 | 11 | 2,227 | 2 | 2 | 4,172 | |||
| Annual Salary: $134,022 (Month = $11,168) | $56K | $134K | $145K | $246K | $34K | $223K | $447K | $125.4 million | $704K | $983K | $223.9 million | $22K | — | $67K | $352.4 million | $486.2 million | |
| LABOR DEPT. (# DRP separations) | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 8 | 1,042 | 17 | 7 | 862 | 1,944 | |||||||
| Annual Salary: $145,886 (Month = $12,157) | — | — | $12K | $24K | $73K | $195K | $486K | $76 million | $1.4 million | $681K | $94.3 million | — | — | — | $173.2 million | $239 million | |
| ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (EPA) (# DRP separations) | 2 | 3 | 3 | 9 | 7 | 15 | 709 | 5 | 124 | 1,751 | 3 | 2,631 | |||||
| Annual Salary: $146,015 (Month = $12,168) | $24,336 | — | $37K | $7K | $329K | $341K | $913K | $51.7 million | $426K | $12 million | $191.8 million | $37K | — | — | $257.7 million | $355.7 million | |
| NATIONAL AERONAUTICS & SPACE ADMINISTRATION (NASA) (# DRP separations) | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 10 | 22 | 379 | 13 | 23 | 1,083 | 1,833 | 5 | 11 | 3,387 | |||
| Annual Salary: $185,410 (Month = $15,451) | $15K | — | $46K | $30K | $139K | $618K | $1.7 million | $35.1 million | $1.4 million | $2.8 million | $151 million | $170 million | $155K | $510K | $363.1 million | $501.1 million | |
| SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION (SBA) (# DRP separations) | 1 | 17 | 13 | 39 | 35 | 10 | 55 | 1,178 | 6 | 5 | 242 | 6 | 1,607 | ||||
| Annual Salary: $98,291 (Month = $8,191) | $8K | $278K | $106K | $639K | $860K | $328K | $2.3 million | $57.9 million | $344K | $328K | $17.8 million | $49K | — | — | $80.9 million | $111.7 million | |
| SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION (SSA) (# DRP separations) | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 598 | 2 | 5 | 179 | 2 | 807 | ||||||
| Annual Salary: $144,455 (Month = $12,038) | — | — | $60K | $96K | $108K | $144K | $361K | $43.2 million | $168.5 million | $481.5 million | $19.4 million | $24K | — | — | $64.0 million | $88.4 million | |
| STATE DEPT. (# DRP separations) | 1 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 472 | 1 | 494 | |||||||||
| Annual Salary: $133,834 (Month = $11,153) | — | — | $11K | $67K | $100K | $312K | $390K | $31.6 million | — | — | $100K | — | — | — | $32.6 million | $44.9 million | |
| HOUSING & URBAN DEVELOPMENT (HUD) (# DRP separations) | 2 | 2 | 7 | 18 | 60 | 7 | 24 | 1,860 | 6 | 12 | 298 | 2,296 | |||||
| Annual Salary: $138,042 (Month = $11,504) | $23K | $46K | $81K | $414K | $2.1 million | $322K | $1.4 million | $128.4 million | $483K | $1.1 million | $31 million | — | — | — | $165.2 million | $227.9 million | |
| EDUCATION DEPT. (# DRP separations) | 3 | 151 | 1 | 1 | 67 | 2 | 225 | ||||||||||
| Annual Salary: $150,539 (Month = $12,545) | — | — | — | — | — | — | $188K | $11.4 million | $88K | $100K | $7.6 million | $25K | — | — | $19.3 million | $26.7 million | |
| NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION (NRC) (# DRP separations) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 19 | 1 | 1 | 92 | 117 | |||||||||
| Annual Salary: $175,230 (Month = $14,602) | — | — | $29K | — | — | $58K | $73K | $1.7 million | $102 million | $116.8 million | $12.1 million | — | — | — | $14.1 million | $19.5 million | |
| NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION (NSF) (# DRP separations) | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 270 | 48 | 331 | |||||||||
| Annual Salary: $166,936 (Month = $13,911) | — | $28K | $28K | — | $83K | $167K | $348K | $22.5 million | — | — | $6.0 million | — | — | — | $29.2 million | $40.3 million | |
| OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT (OPM) (# DRP separations) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 424 | 4 | 5 | 273 | 2 | 2 | 734 | |||
| Annual Salary: $133,253 (Month = $11,104) | $11K | $22K | $11K | $244K | $67K | $133K | $277K | $28.2 million | $311K | $444K | $27.3 million | $22K | — | $67K | $57.1 million | $78.9 million | |
| U.S. AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (USAID) (# DRP separations) | 1 | 3 | 5 | 158 | 1 | 1 | 62 | 1 | 232 | ||||||||
| Annual Salary: $168,557 (Month = $14,046) | — | — | — | $28K | — | $169K | $351K | $13.3 million | $98K | $112K | $7.8 million | — | — | $42K | $22.0 million | $30.3 million | |
| ALL NON-CFO ACT AGENCIES (Combined) (# DRP separations) | 1 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 12 | 19 | 1,832 | 19 | 15 | 741 | 10 | 4 | 45 | 2,717 | ||
| Annual Salary: $112,456 (Month = $9,371) | $9K | $112K | $28K | $94K | $141K | $450K | $890K | $103 million | $1.2 million | $1.1 million | $62.5 million | $94K | $75K | $1.3 million | $171 million | $236 million | |
| TOTAL EMPLOYEES | 41 | 151 | 184 | 514 | 555 | 535 | 1,127 | 106,739 | 2,730 | 673 | 24,177 | 2,053 | 23 | 108 | 139,610 | ||
| TOTAL COST | $422K | $2.8 million | $2.7 million | $8.5 million | $14.0 million | $18.5 million | $48.5 million | $5.4 billion | $210.1 million | $52.5 million | $2.1 billion | $172.2 million | $511K | $3.3 million | $8.0 billion | $11.1 billion | |
| TOTAL COST + 38% BENEFITS FACTOR (All Agencies) | $583K | $3.9 million | $3.7 million | $11.8 million | $19.4 million | $25.6 million | $66.9 million | $7.5 billion | $290 million | $72.4 million | $2.9 billion | $237.7 million | $705K | $4.5 million | $11.1 billion | +38% Benefits Factor | |
ENDNOTES:
[1] “Original Fork in the Road Email to Federal Employees,” U.S. OFFICE OF PERSONELL MANAGEMENT (OPM), https://www.opm.gov/about-us/fork/original-email-to-employees/
[2] Public Citizen only looked at Deferred Resignation Program (DRP) federal separations, the largest of the federal programs initiated to slash the number of federal workers. Our review did not count costs of those employees who participated in other federal separation related programs, such as the Voluntary Early Retirement Authority (VERA) program, the Voluntary Separation Incentive Payment (VSIP) program, Involuntary Administrative Leave for probationary employees, or official Reduction in Force (RIF) layoffs by the administration.
[3] “Workforce Changes,” U.S. OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT (OPM), https://data.opm.gov/explore-data/analytics/workforce-changes
[4] Nick Bednar, “Breaking Down OPM’s ‘Fork in the Road’ Email to Federal Workers,” LAWFARE (January 30, 2025), https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/breaking-down-opm-s–fork-in-the-road–email-to-federal-workers
[5] “Deferred Resignation Program – Frequently Asked Questions,” U.S. OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT (OPM), https://www.opm.gov/about-us/fork/faq/
[6] OPM recently released updated data and a new feature on its website on May 6, 2026, that permits users to generate customizable tables for various federal employment related data, including the Deferred Resignation Program. This data is presumably more accurate and up to date than previous calculations regarding the DRP and related programs. Importantly, this data does not provide information on how long federal employees were in the DRP prior to their separation from federal service hindering precise cost estimates. The data does indicate the month in which employees left federal service, however, permitting calculations that can provide a realistic estimate of the cost of the DRP to the government and ultimately the U.S. taxpayer.
[7] Melanie Hanson, “Cost of School Meals,” EDUCATION DATA INITIATIVE (last updated August 21, 2025), https://educationdata.org/school-lunch-debt
[8] Ibid.
[9] “Childcare Costs By State,” SELF FINANCIAL, INC., https://www.self.inc/info/childcare-costs-by-state/
[10] “Child Care Cost by State 2026,” WORLD POPULATION REVIEW, https://worldpopulationreview.com/state-rankings/child-care-costs-by-state
[11] “2025 Employer Health Benefits Survey,” KAISER FAMILY FOUNDATION (October 22, 2025), https://www.kff.org/health-costs/2025-employer-health-benefits-survey/
[12] Ibid.
[13] “Educator Pay Data 2026,” NATIONAL EDUCATION ASSOCIATION, https://www.nea.org/resource-library/educator-pay-and-student-spending-how-does-your-state-rank
[14] “US rental market: What is the average rent in US?” ZILLOW RENTALS, https://www.zillow.com/rental-manager/market-trends/united-states/
[15] “Trends in College Pricing: Highlights,” COLLEGE BOARD, https://research.collegeboard.org/trends/college-pricing/highlights
[16] “Frequently Asked Questions: Can I take an extended vacation while on administrative leave,” U.S. OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT (OPM), https://www.opm.gov/about-us/fork/faq/
[17] This data is based on the OPM Table Builder Chart included below.
[18] This data is also based on the OPM Table Builder Chart included below.
[19] “Summary of AFGE Lawsuits against Trump & How Litigation Works,” AMERICAN FEDERATION OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES (AFGE) (March 17, 2026), https://www.afge.org/article/summary-of-afge-lawsuits-against-trump–how-litigation-works-2/
[20] See: Eric Katz, “Interior incentivizes more staff departures after already cutting 20% of its workforce,” GOVERNMENT EXECUTIVE (April 2, 2026), https://www.govexec.com/workforce/2026/04/interior-incentivizes-more-staff-departures-after-already-cutting-20-its-workforce/412600/ and “Federal Employees: Should You Accept Deferred Resignation?” HARRIS FEDERAL LAW FIRM (April 8, 2026), https://www.federaldisability.com/federal-employees-should-you-accept-deferred-resignation/ and
[21] Erik Katz, “A federal office designed to stave off the next financial crisis is being dismantled by the Trump administration,” GOVERNMENT EXECUTIVE (March 30, 2026), https://www.govexec.com/workforce/2026/03/federal-office-designed-stave-next-financial-crisis-being-dismantled-trump-administration/412481/?oref=ge-topic-lander-river
[22] Ben Johansen, “U.S.-funded international broadcaster sends new round of resignation offers to employees,” POLITICO (February 26, 2026), https://www.politico.com/news/2026/02/26/voa-resignation-offers-employees-00801744
[23] Rebecca Rainey, “Labor Department Brings Back Staff Who Took ‘Fork’ Offer,” BLOOMBERG LAW (September 18, 2025), https://news.bloomberglaw.com/daily-labor-report/labor-department-brings-back-staff-who-took-fork-offer-to-quit
[24] “IRS plans to rescind hundreds of deferred resignation offers to ‘fill critical vacancies,’” FEDERAL NEWS NETWORK (August 21, 2025) https://federalnewsnetwork.com/workforce/2025/08/irs-plans-to-rescind-some-deferred-resignation-offers-to-fill-critical-vacancies/
[25] Hannah Natanson, Adam Taylor, Meryl Kornfield, Rachel Siegel and Scott Dance, “Trump administration races to fix a big mistake: DOGE fired too many people,” THE WASHINGTON POST (June 6, 2025), https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/06/06/doge-staff-cuts-rehiring-federal-workers/
[26] Eric Katz, “Some agencies are walking back workforce cuts with critical functions at risk of failure,” GOVERNMENT EXECUTIVE (April 25, 2025), https://www.govexec.com/workforce/2025/04/some-agencies-are-walking-back-workforce-cuts-critical-functions-risk-failure/404868/
[27] Drew Friedman and Jory Heckman, “‘This isn’t how a RIF is supposed to work:’ HHS reinstates some laid-off employees, gives them extra work,” FEDERAL NEWS NETWORK (May 23, 2025), https://federalnewsnetwork.com/workforce/2025/05/this-isnt-how-a-rif-is-supposed-to-work-hhs-reinstates-some-laid-off-employees-gives-them-extra-work/
[28] Brenda Goodman and Meg Tirrell, “More than half of CDC staffers recently fired by Trump administration have been reinstated, CNN (October 12, 2025), https://www.cnn.com/2025/10/12/health/fired-cdc-staffers-reinstated
[29] Lisbeth Perez, “DISA Begins Targeted Rehiring After Cuts,” MERITALK (December 9, 2025), https://meritalk.com/articles/disa-begins-targeted-rehiring-after-cuts/
[30] Jory Heckman, A fresh start:’ NOAA reinstates some probationary employees it already fired twice,” FEDERAL NEWS NETWORK (January 7, 2026), https://federalnewsnetwork.com/workforce/2026/01/a-fresh-start-noaa-reinstates-some-probationary-employees-it-already-fired-twice/
[31] “FEDERAL REAL PROPERTY: Leading Practices Could Help GSA Better Achieve Its Reorganization Goals,” GAO-26-108155, GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE (GAO) (April 2026), https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-26-108155.pdf
[32] “Federal Government Reinstates Hundreds of NIOSH Employees,” Public Sector HR Association (February 2026), https://pshra.org/federal-government-reinstates-hundreds-of-niosh-employees/
[33] “Fork in the Road – Frequently Asked Questions,” U.S. OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT (OPM), https://www.opm.gov/about-us/fork/faq/
[34] See: “Department of Education: Full Costs and Savings Estimate Needed for Reduction-in-Force and Restructuring of the Office for Civil Rights,” GAO-26-108320, GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE (GAO) (January 29, 2026), https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-26-108320.pdf; “2025 TAX FILING Management of Agency Reforms and Workforce Planning Needed to Address Severe Risks to Future IRS Operations,” GAO-26-108116, GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE (GAO) (March 2026), https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-26-108116.pdf; and “FEDERAL REAL PROPERTY: Leading Practices Could Help GSA Better Achieve Its Reorganization Goals,” GAO-26-108155, GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE (GAO) (April 2026), https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-26-108155.pdf
[35] “The Cost to Our Economy – Federal Harms Tracker,” PARTNERSHIP FOR PUBLIC SERVICE (last updated March 17, 2026), https://federalharmstracker.org/cost-to-our-economy/
[36] Jason Bramwell, “IRS Workforce Has Shrunk 25% Since Trump Took Office,” CPA PRACTICE ADVISOR (July 22, 2025), https://www.cpapracticeadvisor.com/2025/07/22/irs-workforce-has-shrunk-25-since-trump-took-office/165368/
[37] The Budget Lab at Yale, “Revenue and Distributional Effects of IRS Funding,” Yale University, 2023, https://budgetlab.yale.edu/research/revenue-and-distributional-effects-irs-funding
[38] Connor Greene, “The Biggest Casualties of Trump’s Year of Government Cuts—and What to Expect in 2026,” TIME (January 1, 2026), https://time.com/7342386/trump-government-cuts-foreign-aid-health-climate-workers/
[39] Bailee Henderson, “FDA, USDA, CDC Continue to Lose Staffers in Fiscal Year 2026,” FOOD SAFETY MAGAZINE, (February 12, 2026), https://www.food-safety.com/articles/11133-fda-usda-cdc-continue-to-lose-staffers-in-fiscal-year-2026
[40] Jocelyn Kaiser, Katie Langin, and Erick Stokstad, “Fired federal scientists reflect on a year of turmoil How the mass terminations of “probationary” workers upended careers,” SCIENCE (February 19, 2026), https://www.science.org/doi/pdf/10.1126/science.aeg5595
[41] Emily Mastej, Tiffany Do, and Arghavan Salles, “The ship is going down and we are powerless”: The Impact of Federal Funding Changes on Researchers Training the Next Generation of Scientists Authors,” BIORXIV (Preprint) (August 27, 2025), https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.08.22.671828v1
[42] Addy Smith, Alice Wu, Arjun Krishnaswami, Cole Donovan, and Zoë Brouns, “New DOE Re-Organization Raises Uncertainty for American Science, Energy Innovation, and Affordability,” FEDERATION OF AMERICAN SCIENTISTS (FAS) (November 26, 2025), https://fas.org/publication/new-doe-re-organization-raises-uncertainty-for-american-science/
[43] Kathleen Romig and Devin O’Connor, “Reassignment Won’t Fix the Largest-Ever Social Security Staffing Cut,” CENTER ON BUDGET AND POLICY PRIORITIES (June 23, 2025), https://www.cbpp.org/research/social-security/reassignment-wont-fix-the-largest-ever-social-security-staffing-cut
[44] Larry Miller, “Exclusive: Internal email warned of retirement processing delays during workforce reductions; backlog remains a problem,” WUSA9 (CBS affiliate) (February 2, 2026), https://www.wusa9.com/article/news/politics/exclusive-internal-email-warned-of-retirement-processing-delays-during-workforce-reductions/65-a6d03757-0951-482e-a0de-7b799a5ac423
[45] “Shahar Ziv, PSLF Eligibility And Student Loan Forgiveness Turmoil Spark Panic,” FORBES (March 10, 2025), https://www.forbes.com/sites/shaharziv/2025/03/10/student-loan-forgiveness-pslf-and-education-department-chaos-spark-panic/
[46] Larry Miller, “Federal retirees wait seven months for benefits as processing backlog persists,” WUSA9 (CBS affiliate) (April 24, 2026), https://www.wusa9.com/article/news/politics/federal-fallout/federal-retirees-benefits-backlog-opm/65-a18e3406-8b98-42c2-ac1f-42e7d0989a14
[47] Meghann Myers, “More than 60K defense civilians have left under Hegseth—but officials are mum on the effects. Months into a hastily ordered overhaul, officials declined to disclose metrics, discuss problems,” DEFENSE ONE (September 25, 2025), https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2025/09/more-60k-defense-civilians-have-left-under-hegseth-officials-are-mum-effects/408375/
[48] Terry Gerton, “DOJ has lost over 100 career leaders since January, sparking concerns over its capacity and expertise,” FEDERAL NEWS NETWORK (October 28, 2025), https://federalnewsnetwork.com/workforce/2025/10/doj-has-lost-over-100-career-leaders-since-january-sparking-concerns-over-its-capacity-and-expertise/
[49] “FBI Association Says No Due Process in Terminations, Warns of Impact to Bureau,” FEDWEEK (August 29, 2025), https://www.fedweek.com/fedweek/fbi-agents-association-warns-congress-firings-without-due-process-threaten-bureau-integrity/
[50] Maximillian Alvarez, “Trump Cuts Leave VA Hospital Nurses and Veteran Patients in a Crisis,” IN THESE TIMES (November 24, 2025), https://inthesetimes.com/article/trump-cuts-va-hospital-nurses-and-veteran-patients-healthcare-working-people-podcast
[51] Robin Respaut, “VA shake-up hits mental health services for US veterans,” REUTERS (March 20, 2025), https://www.reuters.com/world/us/va-shake-up-disrupts-mental-health-services-some-us-veterans-2025-03-20/
[52] Marcy Byars, “USDA lost 24,000 workers under Trump, hurting critical resources for farmers,” NEBRASKA PUBLIC MEDIA (February 24, 2026), https://nebraskapublicmedia.org/en/news/news-articles/usda-lost-24000-workers-under-trump-hurting-critical-resources-for-farmers/
[53] Ibid.
[54] “U.S. Department of Agriculture Staffing Levels,” OAI Report 25-064-01, Department of Agriculture, OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL (December 17, 2025), https://www.oversight.gov/sites/default/files/documents/reports/2025-12/USDA%20Staffing%20Levels%20Final%20Report%20-%20Dec%2017_508-signed.pdf
[55] Kate Wehle, “Wildfires: A Burning Threat Under Trump 2.0,” UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO (May 25, 2025), https://knowledge.uchicago.edu/record/15361#files
[56] Martha Bellisle and Claire Rush, “How Trump’s mass layoffs raise the risk of wildfires in the US West, according to fired workers,” ASSOCIATED PRESS (AP) (February 21, 2025), https://apnews.com/article/fired-federal-workers-wildfires-season-trump-west-d915e8ea272b7265912d7eafdbf7420a
[57] Eric Katz, “Cuts to FEMA and other agencies will lead to slow disaster response, former administrator says,” GOVERNMENT EXECUTIVE (June 26, 2025), https://www.govexec.com/management/2025/06/cuts-fema-and-other-agencies-will-lead-slow-disaster-response-former-administrator-says/406362/
[58] “Mary Andino, Trump’s 2027 Budget Proposals Would Cut NPS Staff, Slash Budgets,” GEARJUNKIE, (April 6, 2026), https://gearjunkie.com/parks-and-public-lands/national-park-service-budget-cuts
[59] John Garder, “Testimony: Public Witness Day on FY26 Appropriations,” NATIONAL PARKS CONSERVATION ASSOCIATION (NPCS) (May 15, 2025), https://www.npca.org/articles/8793-testimony-public-witness-day-on-fy26-appropriations
[60] Matthew Daly, “Trump’s firing of 1,000 national park workers raises concerns about maintenance and operating hours,” ASSOCIATED PRESS (AP) (February 19, 2025), https://apnews.com/article/trump-national-park-firings-doge-grand-teton-baedee0a748a6374eafb6f95aac5dadc
[61] Jory Heckman, “Interior Dept gives employees third shot at voluntary incentives to leave their jobs,” FEDERAL NEWS NETWORK (April 2, 2026), https://federalnewsnetwork.com/reorganization/2026/04/interior-dept-gives-employees-third-shot-at-voluntary-incentives-to-leave-their-jobs/
[62] “Table Builder,” Federal Workforce Data, OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT (OPM), https://data.opm.gov/explore-data/data/table-builder
[63] Keith Cowing, “Reminder: Application DRP/VERA/VSIP Window Closes 25 July,” NASA WATCH (July 15, 2025), https://nasawatch.com/personnel-news/reminder-application-drp-vera-vsip-window-closes-25-july/
[64] Eric Katz, “At least one agency is making a renewed, less generous ‘deferred resignation’ offer to staff,” GOVERNMENT EXECUTIVE (December 15, 2025), https://www.govexec.com/workforce/2025/12/least-one-agency-making-renewed-less-generous-deferred-resignation-offer-staff/410171/
[65] See: “Federal Employee Benefits Summary,” U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE (Updated February 26, 2025), https://www.fsis.usda.gov/careers/federal-employee-benefits-summary#:~:text=*On%20average%2C%20the%20federal%20government%27s,38%25%20of%20your%20annual%20salary.&text=Regular%20pay%20increases%2C%20time%20and,night%20differential%20and%20Sunday%20pay).&text=Earn%204%20hours%20per%20pay%20period%2F13%20days%20per%20year and “Employer Costs for Employee Compensation Summary,” U.S. BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS (March 20, 2026), https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.nr0.htm