Latest news with #JudgeIllston
E&E News
22-05-2025
- Politics
- E&E News
Judge suggests Trump layoff plans ‘usurp' Congress' power
A federal judge in California said Thursday that critics suing over the Trump administration's layoff plans are likely to succeed in their claims that the executive branch has overstepped its authority. During a hearing Thursday before the District Court for the Northern District of California, Judge Susan Illston rebuked the Trump administration's early moves to conduct mass layoffs and said she is inclined to extend her order that temporarily blocked the administration's federal layoff and reorganization plans. 'My conclusions may change, but the evidence before the court today strongly suggests that the recent actions of the executive branch usurp the constitutional powers of Congress,' Illston said. Advertisement Illston thwarted the Trump administration's plans for mass layoffs across the government earlier this month when she issued an order temporarily pausing the administration's layoff plans at environmental agencies and other departments.
New York Times
16-05-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Trump Administration Asks Supreme Court to Block Ruling on Mass Layoffs
The Trump administration on Friday asked the Supreme Court to block a judge's ruling that had temporarily paused plans for mass layoffs and program closures at federal agencies. Last week, Judge Susan Illston of the Federal District Court for the Northern District of California called for a two-week pause on the administration's actions, which she said were illegal without congressional authorization. Her order barred two dozen federal agencies from moving ahead with the largest phase of President Trump's efforts to downsize the government. In the emergency application filed on Friday, D. John Sauer, the solicitor general, argued that the lower court's 'far-reaching order' would prevent 'almost the entire executive branch from formulating and implementing plans to reduce the size of the federal work force.' That decision was 'based on the extraordinary view' that the president lacked the authority to direct executive agencies on how to conduct large-scale downsizing plans, Mr. Sauer said. Judge Illston's ruling would prevent the Department of Housing and Urban Development from carrying out layoffs it had planned for Sunday. The request to the justices was the 15th emergency application that the administration filed to the Supreme Court since Mr. Trump returned to office in January. The applications have included asking the justices to lift a nationwide pause on Mr. Trump's order ending birthright citizenship, to freeze more than $1 billion in foreign aid and to permit the deportation of Venezuelans to a prison in El Salvador without due process. In February, Mr. Trump signed an executive order directing officials to draft plans for 'large-scale' cuts to the federal work force. Several labor unions, advocacy groups and local governments sued, seeking to block the order. Judge Illston held an emergency hearing in the case last Friday and issued her ruling just hours later. In the 42-page ruling, Judge Illston determined that the government's attempt to lay off workers and shut down offices and programs created an urgent threat to scores of critical services. She also noted that the process required consultation with Congress on any plan to abolish or transfer part of a federal agency. On Monday, the Trump administration filed an emergency request to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, asking it to pause Judge Illston's order pending appeal. But the administration told the Supreme Court that such a ruling would not come quickly enough. Of the many lawsuits filed in response to Mr. Trump's efforts to reshape the federal government, the mass layoffs case is poised to have the broadest effect. Many agencies have not yet announced downsizing plans, but employees throughout the government have been anxiously awaiting announcements. Eileen Sullivan contributed reporting.
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Federal judge orders two-week pause on Trump's mass layoffs
A federal judge has issued a two-week pause on the Trump administration's mass layoffs across the federal government, ruling that the effort to fire of thousands of workers and entirely eliminate some agencies cannot proceed for now. The plaintiffs behind the lawsuit, which include nonprofits, labor unions and multiple cities and counties, argued that the president does not have the power to 'radically restructure and dismantle the federal government' without congressional authorization. In a late Friday order, Judge Susan Illston of the Federal District Court for the Northern District of California agreed. She instituted a 14-day pause on 'reductions in force' until May 23. 'The President has the authority to seek changes to executive branch agencies, but he must do so in lawful ways and, in the case of large-scale reorganizations, with the cooperation of the legislative branch,' she wrote, pointing out that Trump had urged Congress to pass legislation to approve such broad changes in his first term. Illston, a Clinton appointee, wrote that no statute authorizes the Office of Personnel Management, the Office of Management and Budget or Elon Musk's so-called Department of Government Efficiency to carry out mass terminations or restructuring. 'Such action is far outside the bounds of any authority that Congress vested in OPM or OMB, and, as noted, DOGE has no statutory authority whatsoever,' she wrote. The White House did not immediately respond to NBC News' request for comment. The Trump administration has sought to dramatically restructure the federal government, largely through Musk's DOGE, a nongovernmental group. A flurry of lawsuits that challenge those cuts is making its way through the courts, but Friday's order in this particular complaint is likely the most significant — if temporary — setback for the administration so far. This article was originally published on
