Related Posts
by Kristin Rowan, Editor
District Court Injunctions Overturned
Agencies to resume layoffs.
The now infamous “Memo” from the Office of Management and Budget and the Office of Personnel Management instructed agency leaders to cut their workforce as part of the President’s DOGE Workforce Optimization Initiative. The memo from late February started with divisions and employees whose work was not mandated by law and is not considered essential during government shutdowns.
District Court Block on Workforce Downsizing
In May, District Court Judge Susan Illston ruled that the administration lacked congressional approval to make sweeping cuts, and blocked the federal workforce reductions. The order came after lawsuits from labor unions and nonprofit groups argued that the cuts would have drastic negative effects on the American people. They also posed the argument that reorganizing government functions and laying off workers en masse without congressional approval is not allowed by the Constitution. A panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals voted against overturning Illston’s order.
Supreme Court Overrules
On July 8th, the Supreme Court ruled to allow federal agencies to resume the layoff directive. The 8-1 decision lifts one block on reduction in workforce, but there are smaller injunctions across different courts that have not made it to the Supreme Court yet. The decision overturns the injunction for 17 of the 19 agencies included in the initial memo. The Department of Veterans Affairs is among those cleared to resume layoffs. The departments of Defense, Education, Homeland Security and Justice were not included in the directive.
Restructuring Not Included
The Court was careful to convey there has been no decision on whether the reorganization plan for any specific agency is legal. Each agency’s restructuring plan may eventually reach the Supreme Court.
The order also only clears the way for the reduction in workforce. It is also not a blanket green light. The administration has to provide details on how it selects the staff being laid off. In some cases, they must notify Congress and the labor unions.
Dissent, and Agreement
The Supreme Court decision was 8-1 in favor of overturning the injunction. Only Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented.
“In my view, this decision is not only truly unfortunate but also hubristic and senseless. [The] statutory shortfalls likely to result from implementation of this executive order will be immensely painful to the general public, and the plaintiffs, in the interim, causing harm that includes ‘proliferat[ing] foodborne disease,’ perpetuating ‘hazardous environmental conditions,’ ‘eviscerat[ing] disaster loan services for local businesses,’ and ‘drastically reduc[ing] the provision of healthcare and other services to our nation’s veterans.’”
Justice Sotomayor, who voted to overturn the injunction, wrote a one-paragraph solo opinion saying she agrees with Jackson that the administration cannot “restructure federal agencies in a manner inconsistent with congressional mandates.”
“The plans themselves are not before this Court, at this stage, and we thus have no occasion to consider whether they can and will be carried out consistent with the constraints of law,” Sotomayor warned.
Blocks Still Standing
The Supreme Court ruling overturned the injunction put in place on May 22nd by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. This is the only injunction impacted by the ruling. Other injunctions remain in place.
On July 1, U.S. District Judge Melissa DuBose granted an injunction to stop the downsizing and restructuring of HHS. This injunction was not explicitly mentioned in the latest ruling, but could still be impacted.
U.S. District Judge Matthew Maddox ordered the reinstatments of AmeriCorps employees who were laid off or put on leave and blocked any additional reductions that affect union employees.
U.S. District Judge Myong Joun indefinitely blocked the reduction of workforce of school districts in Boston. An emergency bid with the Supreme Court to lift the block could be heard and decided at any time.
A federal appeals court blocked a 90 percent reduction of the staff at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau; federal judges reversed similar reductions at DEI foundations, and all actions under Pete Marocco are voided.
Final Thoughts
Numerous cases remain undecided in lower courts and the Supreme Court. Whether any layoffs will be finalized and whether departmental restructing is legal remain to be seen. For now, expect a reduction in personnel at the VA, but not yet at HHS or CMS. We will continue to report on updates as they occur.
# # #
Kristin Rowan has been working at The Rowan Report since 2008. She is the owner and Editor-in-chief of The Rowan Report, the industry’s most trusted source for care at home news, and speaker on Artificial Intelligence and Lone Worker Safety and state and national conferences.
She also runs Girard Marketing Group, a multi-faceted boutique marketing firm specializing in content creation, social media management, and event marketing. Connect with Kristin directly kristin@girardmarketinggroup.com or www.girardmarketinggroup.com
©2025 by The Rowan Report, Peoria, AZ. All rights reserved. This article originally appeared in The Rowan Report. One copy may be printed for personal use: further reproduction by permission only. editor@therowanreport.com
