Committee Leaders Lofgren and Stevens Statement on NSF Employee Firings by DOGE
Washington, DC – Today, the National Science Foundation (NSF) fired 168 individuals, including probationary employees and expert appointments. This is the next science agency to cave to the demands of Co-President Elon Musk’s DOGE to terminate employees across the government.
“This Administration’s relentless attack on science is a disgrace and international embarrassment,” said Ranking Members Lofgren and Stevens. “Indiscriminately firing 10% of NSF’s workforce today is a massive mistake that will hurt our ability to compete globally, especially with China. Probationary employees are often the professionals tackling the newest and most critical threats to the U.S. scientific ecosystem and have decades of subject-matter training in areas of emerging technology. The United States science and innovation enterprise will no longer be the envy of the world if Co-Presidents Elon Musk and Donald Trump get their way. In one fell swoop, the foundation of American research and development that has been painstakingly built for decades with celebrated bipartisan legislation like the CHIPS and Science Act now crumbles at the hands of Musk’s DOGE minions who have no idea what they’re doing. These federal employees have dedicated themselves to strengthening American science. They deserve better than this. Our country deserves better than this. We are extremely disappointed in NSF leadership. They have failed American science by not standing up to DOGE and protecting their employees. Dr. Panchanathan must reverse these firings.”
Science Committee Democrats have launched a survey for individuals fired by the Trump Administration to share their story.
Learn more here: democrats-science.house.gov/sciencefirings
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