The Interior Department has shed nearly 11 percent of its staff during the Trump administration, a reduction of nearly 7,500 employees who took buyout offers or early retirement in the past five months, according to data obtained by POLITICO’s E&E News.
Responding to a Freedom of Information Act request, Interior revealed that the department has lost more than 1,000 staffers each from the National Park Service, Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Geological Survey, and Bureau of Reclamation in recent months.
The data does not specify which programs individuals opted into, but includes employees who separated from Interior since Jan. 20 through either round of the “deferred resignation program” that pays staffers to go on administrative leave through September, early retirement or a voluntary separation incentive payment.
An Interior spokesperson did not respond to questions about whether the department would seek additional cuts among its staff or if the Trump administration has met its goals with the department. Additional cuts at Interior and other agencies are widely anticipated but are on hold due to a federal court injunction. The White House is pressing the Supreme Court to lift that order and resume 40 reductions-in-force at 17 agencies.
“We don’t have a comment on personnel numbers,” said Interior spokesperson Elizabeth Peace. “The Department of the Interior stands firm in our commitment to streamlining operations and directing resources towards prioritizing retaining first responders, parks services and energy production employees.”
According to Office of Personnel Management data, Interior reported more than 69,000 employees as of September 2024, the most recent figures available.
Under the reduction efforts, the National Park Service shed 1,645 staff, or about 10 percent of the nearly 16,000 permanent employees the agency counted in fall 2024. As of May, NPS had 14,770 permanent/full-time employees, according to images from an internal database viewed by E&E.
Similarly, the Fish and Wildlife Service reported losing 1,316 staffers since January, down from the nearly 9,100 it reported in September, while Reclamation lost 1,180 of its 5,700 employees.
USGS cut 1,178 employees from the 8,400 workers it reported in September.
The Bureau of Land Management, which reported nearly 11,000 employees last fall, saw 838 people depart.
Smaller agencies, such as the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, also saw significant reductions. That office lost nearly 18 percent of its previous 634-member staff, down by 113 individuals.
The Office of Inspector General shed 49 of its 280 employees. The Office of Surface Mining, Reclamation and Enforcement lost 87 of its previous 408 positions.
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said in April that he does not have “a specific goal in mind” for shrinking the department’s workforce.
“The goal is to make sure that we’re doing a great job at the task that we have, the missions that we have, and so there is no specific headcount number that we’re targeting,” he said.
Theresa Pierno, president and CEO of the National Parks Conservation Association, said the staff reductions are harming both public lands and the employees who work on them.
“Even national parks like Yosemite are struggling to provide basic visitor services with overwhelmed park staff,” Pierno said. “Thousands of essential positions remain vacant across the system, including roughly 100 superintendent roles. The agency is being stretched to the limit without the leadership or resources it needs to function. Any further reduction in force, as the administration is reportedly planning, would be devastating to the future of our national parks.”
Reporters Heather Richards and Scott Streater contributed.
