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# White House Could Layoff Thousands of NASA Employees
- URL: https://proximareport.com/white-house-layoff-thousands-nasa/
- Published: 2025-09-27T22:48:38.000Z
- Updated: 2025-09-27T22:48:38.000Z
- Author: Jack C.
- Tags: Trump Administration, United States, Space Policy, NASA

As a government shutdown looms, federal employees may be let go, including an untold number at NASA.

[*Politico* reported on September 24th](https://www.politico.com/news/2025/09/24/white-house-firings-shutdown-00579909?ref=proximareport.com) that the Trump White House's Office of Management and Budget (OMB) wants to reduce the American federal agency workforces nationwide if a government shutdown is not averted [before September 30th](https://edition.cnn.com/2025/09/26/politics/government-shutdown-september-2025-explained?ref=proximareport.com). Politico's reporting on the matter states:

> "OMB told agencies to identify programs, projects and activities where discretionary funding will lapse on Oct. 1 and no alternative funding source is available. For those areas, OMB directed agencies to begin drafting \[reduction in force\] plans that would go beyond standard furloughs, permanently eliminating jobs in programs not consistent with President Donald Trump’s priorities in the event of a shutdown."

It is unknown what programs or missions NASA's leadership may eliminate, but it [may mean a shrinkage](https://nasawatch.com/personnel-news/a-shutdown-could-mean-actual-rifs/?ref=proximareport.com) of the space agency's workforce during a period where the White House is already cutting. [So far](https://proximareport.com/articles/nasa-six-months-trump), at least 2,100 employees have left, with an attempted 6 billion United States Dollars in funding cuts, since the start of President Trump's second term eight months ago.

In recent weeks, Acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy [has said](https://proximareport.com/articles/duffy-us-win-moon-defunded) repeatedly that NASA won't use funds restored to it by lawmakers, but [*Ars Technica* recently reports](https://arstechnica.com/space/2025/09/amid-budget-uncertainty-nasa-gets-some-good-news-use-house-funding-levels/?ref=proximareport.com) that science missions have now been directed to use that funding.

However, funding is only half of the effort to materialize space missions. [*NASA Watch* has reported](https://nasawatch.com/personnel-news/jplers-get-layoff-update-letter/?ref=proximareport.com) on September 26th that NASA's California-based Jet Propulsion Laboratory, America's hub for missions to other planets, is preparing for a reduction in force that would be implemented by October 15th. That layoff could see up to 4,000 of the lab's 5,500 employees leaving, according to *NASA Watch*'s sources.

Before the news of a potentially massive layoff at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Zoe Lofgren (Democrat, California), Ranking Member of the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology, [criticised the White House's move](https://democrats-science.house.gov/news/press-releases/ranking-member-lofgren-condemns-trumps-rif-threat?ref=proximareport.com), stating:

> "The Trump administration continues to use public servants as pawns in their game to distract and destroy our federal agencies," – "This threat of further \[reduction in force\] is shortsighted and stupid. The government can’t be run like a deal-making game show—people behind critical agency efforts provide services that benefit all Americans. Why does Trump want to punish Americans?"