National lab officials are weighing laying off more than 3,000 scientists and staff because of Trump administration budget cuts, according to two people familiar with internal operations at the Department of Energy facilities.
More than a third of the job cuts would be at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Colorado because of shifted funds under DOE’s fiscal 2025 budget plan, said the people, who were granted anonymity since the deliberations are not public. It’s unclear whether layoff plans have been finalized, but the estimates were formulated by “senior officials” at multiple labs based on expected reductions in funding levels, the people said.
The plan, if implemented, could knock out approximately a third of staffing at NREL and hinder research on wind and solar projects, which are already under strain because of rollbacks to incentives in the Republican megalaw signed by President Trump on July 4.
In an emailed statement, DOE spokesperson Ben Dietderich said the department “cannot confirm anonymously leaked ‘estimations’ of layoffs made by third-party contractors.”
