Twenty state attorneys general have filed a lawsuit against nearly two dozen federal agencies over the Trump administration’s mass termination of government employees.
The lawsuit, led by New York Attorney General Letitia James, argues that the terminations violate federal law by failing to provide 60 days’ notice of the layoffs.
“President Trump and his Administration have made no secret of their contempt for the roughly 2 million committed professionals who form the federal civil service. Nor have they disguised their plans to terminate vast numbers of civil servants, starting with tens of thousands of probationary employees,” the suit says. “These large-scale, indiscriminate firings are not only subjecting the Plaintiff States and communities across the country to chaos. They are also against the law.”
The lawsuit asserts that the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has “unlawfully directed federal agencies to conduct mass terminations of probationary employees, suddenly and without any advance notice.”
The filing further argues that the layoffs have “inflicted immense harms on tens of thousands of probationary employees and their families. It has rendered them jobless without providing any advance notice that might have given them an opportunity to seek other employment or even budget to prepare for the loss of income.” The attorneys general claim that “many affected employees and their families are struggling to make ends meet—to pay rent, buy groceries, and care for their loved ones.”
States joining New York in the lawsuit include Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta called the mass firings “simply unlawful.”
“Not only is the administration breaking the law, while they claim these actions are necessary to ‘curb waste and inefficiency,’ the reality is that abrupt and indiscriminate terminations will lead to increased operation disruptions, higher rehiring costs, and long-term financial burdens on taxpayers,” he said. “This reckless directive has inflicted chaos and harmed federal workers who are key contributors to our economy and provide critical services that affect the everyday lives of Californians, from offering support for veterans and farmers, to protection of our cherished national parks and lands. I won’t stand idly by as the President attempts yet another unlawful power grab.”
