The Department of Energy’s loan arm is considering a plan to cap total staff at just above 200 full-time employees over the coming years, marking a significant cut from the Biden administration, according to an internal document viewed by POLITICO’s E&E News.
“In order to maintain funding through [fiscal 20]28, we should impose an LPO Federal hiring ceiling of 125 to 140, with the reciprocal amount of contractor FTE of 70 to 60,” the document says.
That level amounts to about half the staff at the Loan Programs Office last year. The Government Accountability Office recently said 2024 staff totals reached 412 federal and contractor employees, including part-time employees.
Just weeks into the Trump administration, funding cuts triggered contractor layoffs at the LPO. The office has also faced a series of leadership departures. The second director for the office under President Donald Trump departed in June. No successor has been named, although Greg Beard, a former cryptocurrency miner, is listed as a senior adviser.
