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A federal judge in California has temporarily halted efforts by the Trump administration to implement sweeping layoffs across multiple federal agencies, ruling that such actions likely require congressional approval.
U.S. District Judge Susan Illston issued a two-week injunction preventing the execution of downsizing plans ordered by President Donald Trump in February. In her decision, she stated that “the president likely needs congressional cooperation to mandate the changes he seeks,” prompting the court to freeze the reductions “to prevent large-scale workforce cuts at this time.”
The ruling comes amid escalating legal challenges to the administration’s aggressive campaign to reduce the federal workforce as part of a broader initiative led by Trump’s ally Elon Musk through the Office of Government Efficiency.
In an executive order dated February 11, Trump directed agencies to conduct a “radical overhaul of the federal bureaucracy,” calling for the dismissal of employees deemed non-essential.
In response, labor unions, nonprofit organizations, and six local governments filed a lawsuit accusing the administration and various federal agencies of overstepping legal boundaries by proceeding with layoffs without congressional authorization.
The American Federation of Government Employees, which leads the plaintiffs, praised the court’s decision. In a joint statement, the group said the Trump administration’s “unlawful attempt to reorganize the federal government has plunged agencies into disarray and disrupted vital public services nationwide.”
“We represent communities that depend on a functioning federal government,” the statement continued. “Random layoffs and ad hoc reorganization efforts do not serve that goal.”
Since returning to the White House in January, Trump has moved swiftly to cut thousands of federal jobs and scale back government programs, particularly targeting the U.S. Agency for International Development. Several of his administration’s major policies, including those on immigration and budget reallocations, have already been blocked or delayed by federal courts.
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