The bloated, inefficient, and corrupt federal bureaucracy is finally facing the long-overdue reckoning it deserves.
President Donald Trump has directed all federal agencies to prepare for major workforce reductions and a sweeping structural reorganization.
According to a newly released memo from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), agencies must submit their initial plans for large-scale reductions in force (RIFs) by March 13, 2025.
This directive is part of Trump’s ‘Department of Government Efficiency Workforce Optimization Initiative,’ an executive order signed on February 11, 2025, aimed at eliminating waste, bureaucracy, and deep-state entrenchment in Washington.
“The federal government is costly, inefficient, and deeply in debt. At the same time, it is not producing results for the American public. Instead, tax dollars are being siphoned off to fund unproductive and unnecessary programs that benefit radical interest groups while hurting hardworking American citizens,” according to the memo signed by OMB Director Russell T. Vought and Acting OPM Director Charles Ezell.
“This is the mandate of the American people,” the memo added, pointing to Trump’s landslide victory on November 5, 2024, as proof that voters are fed up with Washington’s entrenched elite.
“President Trump required that ‘Agency Heads shall promptly undertake preparations to initiate large-scale reductions in force (RIFs), consistent with applicable law.’ President Trump also directed that, no later than March 13, 2025, agencies develop Agency Reorganization Plans,” the memo states.
The administration’s goal is clear: cut unnecessary bureaucracy, remove underperforming government employees, and stop taxpayer-funded handouts to radical special interests.
The cuts will come in two waves. Phase 1 ARRPs, due March 13, mark the first step—initial layoffs, office closures, and the removal of non-essential roles.
Phase 2, due April 14, goes even further—cutting excess management, restructuring agencies, and enforcing a laser focus on efficiency.
By September 30, the transformation should be complete, with monthly progress reports ensuring strict oversight and accountability.
A sample timeline in the memo outlines the rapid pace of change. Agencies must define ‘competitive areas’ for RIFs by mid-March, with separations beginning after a 30- to 60-day notice period—shortened with OPM waivers. Early retirements and attrition will ease the transition.
Notably, the OMB-OPM memo exempts critical national security functions, including:
- Positions that are necessary to meet law enforcement, border security, national security, immigration enforcement, or public safety responsibilities;
- Military personnel in the armed forces and all Federal uniformed personnel, including the U.S. Coast Guard, the Commissioned Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service, and the Commissioned Officer Corps of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration;
- Officials nominated and appointed to positions requiring Presidential appointment or Senate confirmation, non-career positions in the Senior Executive Service or Schedule C positions in the excepted service, officials appointed through temporary organization hiring authority pursuant to 5 U.S.C. § 3161, or the appointment of any other non-career employees or officials, if approved by agency leadership appointed by the President;
- The Executive Office of the President; or
- The U.S. Postal Service;
- Finally, agencies or components that provide direct services to citizens (such as Social Security, Medicare, and veterans’ health care) shall not implement any proposed ARRPs until OMB and OPM certify that the plans will have a positive effect on the delivery of such services.
However, radical leftist strongholds in the government—like the EPA, Department of Education, and bloated social welfare programs—are next in line for deep cuts, following USAID.
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