August 5, 2025 - Washington, D.C. – On Monday, Natural Resources Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.), Vice Ranking Member Sarah Elfreth (D-Md.), Federal Lands Subcommittee Ranking Member Joe Neguse (D-Colo.), Water, Wildlife, and Fisheries Subcommittee Ranking Member Val Hoyle (D-Ore.), Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Ranking Member Maxine Dexter (D-Ore.), Indian and Insular Affairs Subcommittee Ranking Member Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.), Energy and Mineral Resources Subcommittee Ranking Member Yassamin Ansari (D-Ariz.), and House Agriculture Committee Forestry and Agriculture Subcommittee Ranking Member Andrea Salinas (D-Ore.) introduced a series of bills to halt the abuse of the Reductions in Force (RIF) process to carry out politically-motivated mass firings across the Department of the Interior and U.S. Forest Service. 

These cuts would gut the federal workforce responsible for fighting wildfires, managing public lands, protecting water, advancing clean energy, and honoring tribal obligations. Interior has already lost 11% of its staff and the Forest Service 15%  — driven by forced retirements, firings, and DOGE’s $21.7 billion scheme to waste taxpayer dollars and pay employees to stay home.

“The Trump administration is firing the public servants who protect lives and communities by helping to battle deadly wildfires, tracking extreme weather events, and keeping water clean and public lands accessible. These RIFs are a targeted purge of the people who show up when disaster strikes and who make this country stronger and safer, day in and day out. These dedicated professionals, and all Americans, deserve better. If Congress doesn’t step in to stop this purge, the fallout will last generations. America will be weaker: less prepared for climate disasters, less able to defend its lands and resources, and less capable of serving its people when it matters most,” said Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.). 

“These are hard-working public servants who steward our public lands, keep us safe from extreme weather events, advance clean energy production, and so much more. Our country is better off with these federal employees on the job. I’m proud to join Ranking Members Huffman and Lofgren in stepping up to protect our civil servants and the many services that they provide for the American people,” said Vice Ranking Member Sarah Elfreth (D-Md.).

“The Trump administration’s continued attacks on hard-working public servants have severely hampered federal agencies’ ability to manage critical programs, including at DOI and USFS. Additional firings at these agencies—especially as the administration seeks to cut critical funding—would be detrimental to our ability to safeguard our natural resources, protect communities, fight wildfires, and more,” said Rep. Joe Neguse (D-Colo.), Ranking Member of the Federal Lands Subcommittee. “That’s why I’m proud to join Ranking Member Huffman in introducing two bills that would protect the employees at our land management agencies and the communities they serve.”

"You don’t fix government by firing the people who make it work,” said Rep. Val Hoyle (D-Ore.), Ranking Member of the Water, Wildlife, and Fisheries Subcommittee. “These attacks on federal workers hurt our ability to manage forests, prepare for emergencies, and keep families safe. It’s wrong, and I’m proud to be a part of the effort to push back.”

"Trump's mass firings are an assault on the very people who protect our air, our water, and our communities from crisis. As a physician and a lawmaker, I know that when disaster strikes—whether it’s a wildfire, a toxic spill, or a public health emergency—it’s scientists, public servants, and field professionals who make the difference between resilience and catastrophe,” said Rep. Maxine Dexter (D-Ore.), Ranking Member of the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee. “I’m proud to help introduce legislation to stop the purge of our public workforce and defend the essential services every American relies on.”

“Trump’s cruel and chaotic attacks on public servants are not about efficiency. These attacks dismantle the very agencies that protect our water, lands, and communities,” said Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.), Ranking Member of the Indian and Insular Affairs Subcommittee. “As wildfires rage across the West and droughts parch our lands, New Mexicans know that fully-staffed agencies protect us from disaster. Our legislation will help defend our communities from the Trump administration’s dangerous firings.”

“Federal workers are essential to making sure that our government truly acts in the best interest of the people,” said Rep. Yassamin Ansari (D-Ariz.), Ranking Member of the Energy and Mineral Resources Subcommittee. “The public servants at the Department of the Interior and the US Forest Service work hard every day to keep us safe and make sure our communities are healthy. I’m so proud to join my colleagues in pushing to suspend Trump’s reckless and indiscriminate firings at this agency so that they can continue their important work.” 

“The Trump administration has already weakened the Forest Service by firing critical staff, including those who manage wildfire preparedness and response. This bill is a necessary step to prevent further reckless reductions," said Rep. Andrea Salinas (D-Ore.), Ranking Member of the Forestry and Nutrition Subcommittee on the House Agriculture Committee. "I’m proud to join Ranking Member Huffman in standing up for the agency's workforce and to protect communities that rely on it.”

Read the full text of the House DOI RIFs bill here.

Read the full text of the House USFS RIFs bill here.

Background

The bills impose an immediate moratorium on agency firings through the RIF process to protect public service delivery while Congress investigates DOGE and assesses long-term staffing needs. 

The Senate companion bills were introduced by Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), and Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.).
Source: Natural Resources Ranking Member Jared Huffman