Acting Ranking Member Lynch Opposes Schedule F and Trump Admin’s Plot to Purge and Politicize the Federal Workforce

Washington, D.C. (June 6, 2025)—Today, Rep. Stephen F. Lynch, Acting Ranking Member of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, submitted a comment letter urging Charles Ezell, Acting Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), to rescind the agency’s proposed rule to reclassify 50,000 federal employees under a new version of Schedule F.  This reclassification ends the civil service protections that prevent federal employees from being fired for political reasons, allowing the Trump Administration and DOGE to continue their devastating purge of America’s nonpartisan, expert federal workforce that has already upended the delivery of vital services to Americans. 

“I write in strong opposition to the proposed rule the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) recently published to purge and politicize the nonpartisan federal workforce by reclassifying 50,000 federal employees under Schedule Policy/Career.   The Administration’s effort to devastate the federal workforce, by way of this proposed rule, would have the greater effect of harming Americans and the life-saving services that they rely on and deserve,” wrote Acting Ranking Member Lynch.  “I strongly urge the Administration to rescind this proposed rule and immediately cease its political assault on the federal workforce that serves the American public.”

OPM’s proposed rule purposefully weakens the federal workforce, making it difficult to retain experienced staff and rewarding federal employees for political loyalty rather than their knowledge and experience. 

In light of the Trump Administration’s reckless cuts across federal agencies, millions of Americans have experienced difficulty accessing the services they need and deserve.  For example, the elimination of 7,000 jobs at the Social Security Administration has resulted in repeated website outages and login issues.  The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), which has lost more than a quarter of its workforce, has been unable to deliver critical services to Americans affected by natural disasters. 

“Nonpartisan civil servants, 30% of whom are veterans, help families in the wake of hurricanes and deadly fires, facilitate access to lifesaving payments like Social Security and unemployment insurance, and protect our national security.  Reclassifying nonpartisan federal employees so they can be replaced with a president’s inexperienced loyalists will undermine public service and jeopardize the well-being and safety of all Americans.  I urge you to rescind this rule,” concluded Acting Ranking Member Lynch. 

Click here to read Acting Ranking Member Lynch’s submission to the federal register in opposition of this proposed rule.

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