Judge Illston Rules Trump's 50% FEMA Staffing Cut Unlawful

U.S. District Judge Susan Illston ruled Sept. 11 that a DHS plan to cut FEMA's staffing by 50% — more than 11,000 employees — was unlawful. Illston found DHS, then led by Secretary Kristi Noem, directed FEMA's leadership last year to submit the plan even though FEMA's own supervisors objected, writing that the number "appears as if pulled from thin air." The ruling came in a broader AFGE lawsuit challenging Trump administration cuts to the federal workforce.

Illston held that DHS violated post-Hurricane Katrina protections that put FEMA's staffing decisions in the agency's own hands and bar DHS from "substantially" reducing FEMA's functions. An August GAO report had already found the 2025 FEMA departures cost the agency institutional knowledge and worsened workforce problems, raising doubts about readiness for the 2026 hurricane season.

Illston did not order a specific remedy, directing the two sides to negotiate relief by Oct. 9. The 50% cut was never fully carried out, and a May 2026 FEMA Review Council report backed away from it in favor of a "strategic review" of staffing levels.