Senior Democrats on the Senate and House Appropriations committees are demanding that the Trump administration disclose its plans to lay off scores of Department of Energy employees, warning the cuts would “hurt communities across the country.”
Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio) urged the administration in a letter to halt all planned reductions and provide detailed information about potential layoffs.
“We write with outrage over the Department of Energy’s decision to move forward with reductions in force (RIFs) across critical program offices during the government shutdown in a clear act of political retribution that will hurt communities across the country,” Murray and Kaptur wrote in a letter to Energy Secretary Christopher Wright.
Murray, who also serves as ranking member of the Senate Energy and Water Development Subcommittee, said the layoffs of 179 employees are part of an effort to enact the administration’s budget without congressional approval, bypassing the appropriations process and defying legislative intent.
Murray and Kaptur warned the layoffs could drive up energy prices by disrupting programs that boost supply and cut costs, adding they were “alarmed” the mass firings could enable waste, fraud, and abuse by removing key oversight staff.
They wrote that the Energy Department has “refused to provide information” on how layoffs will be distributed across key offices, including Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, State Community Energy Programs, and Clean Energy Demonstrations. Staff in those divisions have been notified of terminations but given no end dates, creating “confusion and uncertainty throughout the department.”
They claimed the layoffs would dismantle offices that help lower energy costs for Americans and jeopardize the $366 million-a-year Weatherization Assistance Program, which saves households about $372 annually. Murray and Kaptur added that cutting staff would halt research and development in solar, wind, and hydrogen technologies, undermining the affordability of clean energy.
