Federal agencies have been put on notice—deliver a plan to slash government bloat by March 13 or risk being part of the problem.
President Trump’s team has officially ordered agency heads to submit “large-scale” downsizing strategies, targeting unnecessary spending, redundant positions, and underperforming employees.
The mandate was outlined in a memo from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). It directs agencies to work with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to execute what Trump calls a much-needed purge of “waste, fraud, and abuse” in Washington.
“The federal government is costly, inefficient, and deeply in debt,” reads the memo, co-signed by OMB Director Russell Vought and Acting OPM Director Charles Ezell. “Instead, tax dollars are being siphoned off to fund unproductive and unnecessary programs that benefit radical interest groups while hurting hardworking American citizens.”
The White House is demanding agencies streamline operations by eliminating duplicate management layers, reducing “non-critical” positions, automating simple tasks, and cutting down on unnecessary office space.
DOGE’s overseer, billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, has taken a hands-on role in the effort, sitting in on a cabinet meeting and calling for urgent action to “find a trillion dollars in savings” before the 2026 fiscal year begins.
Trump, addressing his cabinet, made it clear that the time for half-measures is over. “We have a lot of people scamming our country,” he said. “We have a lot of dishonest people. We have a lot of people that took advantage of different situations, and we’re not going to let that happen.”
Musk’s involvement has already stirred controversy. The Tesla and SpaceX CEO recently sent a government-wide email demanding federal workers list five things they’ve accomplished in the past week. Musk later defended this move as a “pulse check” to identify “fictional individuals that are collecting a paycheck.” He also dismissed concerns over the scale of the cuts, stating simply: “If the job is not essential or they’re not doing the job well, they obviously should not be on the payroll.”
Certain sectors, including law enforcement, border security, and national defense, are exempt from the cuts.
However, agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are already bracing for deep reductions. Trump highlighted EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin’s commitment to slashing “65% or so” of the agency’s workforce, a move that could affect thousands of employees.
Federal worker unions are, unsurprisingly, in full panic mode. Everett Kelley, National President of the American Federation of Government Employees, blasted the plan, claiming it would lead to fewer services and “no discernible savings for taxpayers.”
But Trump and Musk aren’t buying the bureaucratic fear-mongering. Musk, wearing a black T-shirt reading “Tech Support” to the cabinet meeting, described DOGE’s mission as streamlining the federal government’s bloated infrastructure.
“The overall goal here is to help address the enormous deficit,” Musk said. “We simply cannot sustain a country with $2 trillion deficits.”
With the first deadline set for March 13 and full implementation expected by September 30, the clock is ticking for Washington’s entrenched bureaucracy. Federal agencies must now justify their existence—or face the chopping block.