Ag Policy Blog

OMAHA (DTN) -- At least one-in-five USDA employees left their jobs in 2025, according to USDA Office of Inspector General report.

The OIG report highlights some agencies shed more than one-third of their staff since the beginning of the Trump administration. By mid-June, USDA had seen total of 20,306 employees leave, the report stated.

The OIG report only covers the first half of the year and stated USDA's staffing dropped from 110,384 employees to 90,078 staff by mid-June.

A USDA report in early October detailing government shutdown plans listed the department's employee numbers at 85,907 staff, implying another 4,171 employees left the department between June and October.

In April, USDA and other federal departments gave employees the option to quit with six months of pay if they chose to take it. At least 15,114 USDA employees took the Deferred Resignation Package (DRP), the OIG report stated.

Along with the DRP, another 1,636 USDA workers were terminated, 1,996 resigned and 1,280 retired, according to the report.

USDA RESPONSE

A USDA spokesperson stated to DTN that the terminations in the OIG report also included "temporary employees who come to the end of their term. The report does not differentiate between the types of terminations and lumps them all together."

USDA also commented, "Under President Trump's leadership, USDA is being transparent about plans to optimize and reduce our workforce and to return the Department to a customer service focused, farmer first agency. We have a solemn responsibility to be good stewards of Americans' hard-earned taxpayer dollars and to ensure that every dollar is being spent as effectively as possible to serve the people. As part of this reorientation, the Deferred Retirement Program (DRP), a completely voluntary tool, was used to empower employees to decide what is best for them."

The comments also added that Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins signed a memorandum in April that excluded certain national security and public safety jobs from the federal hiring freeze as well. "USDA has not stopped hiring for these critical roles."

USDA added, "President Trump is the most pro-farmer president of our lifetime, and through his leadership, the administration is supporting farmers through unprecedented international market access, lowered taxes, and improvements to the farm safety net in the One Big Beautiful Bill."

DOGE'D OUT

The OIG report looked at staffing cuts by pay period. In late April, there were 9,606 employees who left USDA as the department issued its DRP plans and expected responses by the end of March.

Another 4,649 staff left USDA in late February through mid-March.

All of that was during the height of Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) push when DOGE was canceling contracts with farmers and outside organizations and pressed to eliminate all probationary employees in the federal government.

AGENCY STAFF CUTS

The biggest staffing cuts came at the U.S. Forest Service, which lost 5,860 employees, or about 16% of the total workforce.

Rural Development took a steep cut, losing 1,745 employees, or 36% of its employees.

The Farm Service Agency (FSA) had 806 people leave while FSA county offices lost 1,082 people out of 15,837 total staff -- reflecting a smaller percentage loss than other agencies.

At the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), 2,673 employees, or 22% of staff, left the agency.

The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) lost 2,105 employees, or 25% of its workforce.

Another 1,647 employees at the Agricultural Research Service (ARS), or 23%, also left.

The National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), which is responsible for a steady flow of USDA data and reports, saw 275 people, or 34% of staff, leave the agency.

LARGEST CUTS BY STATE

In California, 1,268 staff, or 14%, left their jobs. In Washington, D.C., 1,076 staff also left, representing 32% of positions. In Texas, 1,025 people left their positions as well, or 19% of staff. Texas had the highest number of job terminations of any state at 302 employees.

Maryland, considered part of the "Capital Region," had 984 staff losses. Colorado had 880 USDA staff cuts while Missouri and Oregon each had more than 700 USDA staff leave their posts.

NSAC HIGHLIGHTS CUTS

The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) tracked agency cuts and examined the department's proposed reorganization. NSAC pointed out last week Rural Development had been "severely hollowed out" by job cuts that ranged across the country. Wyoming, for instance, lost more than 60% of Rural Development staff while Alaska lost 57%.

Going back to 2005, Rural Development has effectively lost half its staffing levels since then, NSAC pointed out.

See, https://sustainableagriculture.net/….

SENATOR ON OIG REPORT

Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., requested the OIG report in March. In a statement, Klobuchar said USDA is the "front door" for farmers and ranchers when dealing with challenges or uncertainty. Klobuchar noted her state lost 481 employees, or 19% of staff.

"Rural Americans need a department that is ready and capable of serving them. Particularly shocking is that the agencies responsible for assisting farmers and small towns lost a third of employees; the Forest Service lost nearly 6,000 employees; and the agency responsible for managing animal disease outbreaks lost nearly a quarter of employees," Klobuchar said. "Losing nearly 20% of all USDA staff weakens the department's ability to respond to challenges facing our farmers, leaves our food supply chains more vulnerable to threats like New World screwworm and avian flu, and undermines efforts to drive the rural economy forward."

A full copy of the report can be found at https://usdaoig.oversight.gov/….

Chris Clayton can be reached at Chris.Clayton@dtn.com

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