N.D. CAL.Litigation
Trump administration settles union suit over shutdown mass-layoff authority
The Trump administration agreed on September 25, 2026 to rescind guidance authorizing federal agencies to initiate reductions in force during appropriations lapses, settling American Federation of Government Employees v. Office of Management and Budget in the Northern District of California, Bloomberg Law, Reuters and Government Executive reported. Agencies must strip blanket RIF authorization from shutdown contingency plans and give plaintiff unions 30 days’ notice before restoring such language. The suit challenged mass layoff notices issued during the 2025 government shutdown.
Filing (Bloomberg Law) → · Reuters, Government Executive
Key points
- DOJ and federal unions settled AFGE v. OMB over shutdown-period mass layoffs.Bloomberg LawReutersGovernment Executive
- The administration will rescind guidance treating RIFs as a shutdown-excepted activity.Bloomberg LawGovernment Executive
- Agencies must remove blanket RIF authorization from shutdown contingency plans.ReutersGovernment Executive
- Unions get 30 days’ notice before agencies restore such RIF language in plans.ReutersGovernment Executive
- The case is pending in the Northern District of California, No. 3:25-cv-08302.Bloomberg LawReuters