"An Inside Climate News analysis of just-released federal workforce data shows more than 4,000 employees departed between January 2025 and January 2026, including a majority of team leaders."
"When President Donald Trump first sought to be the Republican standard-bearer in 2016, he promised to reduce the Environmental Protection Agency to “little tidbits.”
Ten years later, he is closer than ever to that goal, according to an Inside Climate News analysis of federal workforce data released by the Office of Personnel Management.
The EPA lost more than 4,000 employees in the first year of Trump’s second term, bringing its staffing down to a total of 12,849—a level not seen since the Reagan administration. That represents a reduction of 24 percent, more than double the rate of losses across the entire federal workforce.
The loss of expertise, particularly in science and health, runs deeper still. Proportionately, there were even greater reductions of staff with doctorate degrees, team leaders and those working in health occupations, a broad government employment category that includes public health experts."
Marianne Lavelle and Peter Aldhous report for Inside Climate News March 6, 2026.
