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Van Hollen Joins Merkley, Waters in Launching New Effort to Boost Congress’ Oversight of Trump’s Mass Firings

Today, U.S. Senator Chirs Van Hollen (D-Md.) joined Senator Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) in introducing first-of-its-kind legislation to strengthen Congress’ authority to protect workers and override federal staffing cuts implemented without consultation as the Trump Administration continues mass firings of federal employees,.

The Reduction in Force (RIF) Review Act empowers Congress to overrule any president’s workforce cuts at all federal agencies, including the Social Security Administration, Environmental Protection Agency, and Department of Health and Human Services. The bill makes RIF plans subject to the Congressional Review Act (CRA) and bolsters Congressional oversight of the executive branch’s actions.

“Donald Trump and Elon Musk are taking a chainsaw to vital public services that benefit millions of Americans by firing hardworking federal employees. They’re not doing this to make government more efficient – they’re dismantling services that help all Americans in order to rig the government in favor of the few — the ultra-rich and big corporations. We need this legislation to expand oversight tools, provide accountability and end Trump and Musk’s reckless attacks on the patriotic federal civil servants who work on behalf of the American people,” said Van Hollen.

“Trump and his unelected billionaire sidekick Elon Musk’s reckless decision to fire tens of thousands of federal employees threatens the critical services that families, veterans, seniors, and children rely on,” said Merkley. “This isn’t about fiscal responsibility—it’s about cruelly shifting resources away from those who need them most to the very richest among us. Gutting resources and staff from vital programs is not resulting in better services or increased efficiency but is instead causing pain for folks in Oregon and across the country. Congress must step in and exercise its oversight of the executive branch.”

Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-Calif.-43), the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, led the House introduction of the RIF Review Act.

“Donald Trump and co-President Elon Musk are engaged in a lawless and reckless restructuring of the federal workforce. By firing thousands of federal workers, they are dismantling the infrastructure supporting Social Security, veterans’ healthcare, and our entire government. Meanwhile, Republicans in Congress are sitting by and refusing to perform their duty under the Constitution to provide a check on this President. That’s why I’m proud to partner with Senator Merkley to introduce the Reduction in Force Review Act, which will restore Congress’s role in overseeing major changes to the federal workforce. Agencies like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau—which I’ve been fighting to protect as Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee—protect ordinary Americans from financial scams and predatory lenders. If Republicans want to declare open season on working families, they should at least have to vote on it,” said Waters.

The RIF Review Act makes an agency’s reduction in force plan subject to a vote in the Senate under the CRA process and enhances existing RIF reporting requirements to include:

  • The specific reasons for the reduction in force;
  • The anticipated impact of the reduction in force on the employees and operations of the federal agency;
  • Any alternatives to the reduction in force that the federal agency considered, including the reasons that the federal agency rejected those alternatives;
  • A summary of the consultations that the federal agency has held with employees of the federal agency who will be affected by the reduction in force (or representatives of those employees); and
  • A summary of how the reduction in force will impact employees of the federal agency who are veterans.

In addition to Merkley and Waters, the RIF Review Act is cosponsored by U.S. Senators Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), and Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) and U.S. Representatives Gerald E. Connolly (D-Va.-11), LaMonica McIver (D-N.J.-10), Julia Brownley (D-Calif.-26), Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.-10), Doris O. Matsui (D-Calif.-07), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) , Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.-14), Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.-12), and Jill N. Tokuda (D-Hawaii-02).

“Trump has launched a callous witch hunt against our civil servants – including the more than 150,000 civil servants in Maryland. When this Administration goes after our civil servants – they are going after the millions of Americans that our federal workforce serves. It's an attack on the Americans who rely on cancer research, food and water safety, Social Security checks, SNAP benefits, and so much more. Trump’s mass layoffs have upended our lives, and we’re sick of it. I won’t stop fighting to protect our civil servants and every American they serve," said Alsobrooks. 

“President Trump and Elon Musk’s ‘Department of Government Efficiency’ are not cutting government waste or making the government more efficient. Instead, they’re upending the lives of thousands of civil servants, many of whom live in Virginia; wasting government time and resources; and making it more difficult for Americans to access important government services, including Social Security and veterans’ benefits,” said Kaine. “This bill is critical to preventing any President or Administration from unilaterally firing federal employees en masse and remaking federal agencies without Congress’ consent—like the Trump Administration is doing now.”

“The Trump-Musk administration has decimated our federal workforce, firing thousands of workers and slashing vital programs that help our veterans, seniors, and American families with no reason or rationale, and no state has felt this impact more than Virginia. I’m glad to introduce this legislation to protect Virginia’s workforce from this chaos. This simply cannot go on,” said Warner.

“In my open-to-all town halls and other meetings across our state, I’ve heard directly from Oregonians about how Donald Trump and Elon Musk firing hardworking public servants is devastating communities small and large,” said Wyden. “This bill is a must-do so Congress can check these unconstitutional and unhinged Trump administration schemes threatening essential services that seniors, children, veterans and more count on.”

“Since the beginning of Trump’s second Administration, tens of thousands of federal employees have been fired, pushed out, or put on leave as part of the government-gutting initiative of ‘DOGE.’ Close to 45,000 federal workers call Illinois home—their jobs should not be subject to the whims of unelected billionaires or political agendas,” said Durbin. “The RIF Review Act would protect our public servants and the integrity of the agencies that they serve.”

The RIF Review Act is endorsed by the AFL-CIO, SEIU, American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU), and National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE).

“The Trump administration’s reckless attempt to dismantle our government without congressional approval threatens vital services Americans depend on every day—from caring for veterans and safeguarding public health, to protecting our environment and maintaining national security. This illegal power grab would gut federal agencies, disrupt communities nationwide, and put critical public services at risk. AFGE is proud to support the RIF Review Act to protect not just the patriotic public servants we represent, but the integrity of American government and the essential services that our nation deserves,” said AFGE National President Everett Kelley.

“DOGE’s illegal firings are an attack on federal workers and on the communities across the country who rely on them. Veterans will be left waiting even longer for care and the workers who ensure our food is safe and water is clean have been fired. If these cuts are not overturned, we’ll see seniors waiting for delayed Social Security checks, and kids and teachers going without vital school programs. The RIF Review Act is critical to stopping these reckless cuts and restoring the jobs that make these programs work. We urge Congress to act now: stand with working people and support this bill, or let the Trump administration and an unelected billionaire dismantle the essential services that millions of Americans count on,” said AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler.

"This administration's war on the services that Americans rely on is despicable,” said Doreen Greenwald, National President of the NTEU. “These illegal mass firings not only harm thousands of dedicated civil servants across the country, but millions of taxpayers who need these services and local communities who will suffer from increased unemployment. I applaud Senator Merkley and Congresswoman Waters for their leadership to ensure that Congress can step in and stop these efforts before it’s too late."

“It is critical that Congress retains its authority to provide oversight of federal agencies, especially when it comes to drastically reducing personnel who provide essential services to the American public,” said NFFE National President Randy Erwin. “The President does not have the authority to unilaterally eliminate hundreds of thousands of federal jobs across the country, which will lead to the destruction of public services and put the American people in danger. Congress must pass the RIF Review Act to ensure federal personnel actions are carried out in a sensible and thoughtful manner in accordance with the law. Thank you to Senator Merkley for his leadership on this issue and for supporting federal workers.”

Full text of the RIF Review Act can be found by clicking here.