The EPA officially reports it lost 733 staffers from January 1 to May 30, 2025, according to an article by The Hill. However, that number is certainly higher, as staffers who opted out when the “fork in the road” buyout offer e-mail was sent are still counted as employees because they still draw a salary.
“The Center for Biological Diversity received two EPA staff directories from an unspecified time in 2024 and in April 2025 through a formal records request from the agency—and found a difference of more than 1,500 employees between the two directories,” The Hill continues. “The group expressed concerns about what such job losses would mean for the agency.
“The EPA can’t protect American health while losing 10% of its staff in a matter of months. And more firings are planned by the Trump administration,” said Ivan Ditmars, associate attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity (CBD), in a written statement.
On May 2, 2025, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced the next phase of EPA organizational improvements, which, once finalized, are ultimately expected to result in “employment levels near those seen when President Ronald Reagan occupied the White House,” according to an Agency news release.
As Industrial Safety & Hygiene News (ISHN) notes, “In 1984, the EPA had just over 11,400 staff members compared to more than 15,100 in 2024.”
“This reorganization will bring much needed efficiencies to incorporate science into our rulemakings and sharply focus our work on providing the cleanest air, land, and water for our communities. It will also save at least $300 million annually for the American people,” Zeldin says in the Agency’s release.
Structural changes
The EPA also announced the following structural changes after a previous announcement earlier this year regarding the termination of the Biden-Harris administration’s environmental justice (EJ) and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) arms of the Agency. In doing so, the EPA began a reduction in force for approximately 280 DEI and EJ employees and transferred 175 employees who performed statutory obligations and mission-essential functions to other offices.
Office of the Administrator: “The agency is shifting its scientific expertise and research efforts to program offices to tackle statutory obligations and mission essential functions,” the Agency’s release notes. “This includes the creation of the Office of Applied Science and Environmental Solutions (OASES) in the Office of the Administrator to align research with the EPA Administrator’s priorities and put science at the forefront of the agency’s rulemakings and technical assistance to states.”
Office of Air and Radiation: The EPA also announced the creation of a first-of-its-kind Office of State Air Partnerships within the Office of Air and Radiation. This office will be focused on working with state, local, and tribal air permitting agencies to improve the processing of state implementation plans (SIPs) and resolve air permitting concerns. This is expected to create consistent answers across the nation for these permitting processes.
The EPA is also creating the Office of Clean Air Programs to “align statutory obligations and mission essential functions based on centers of expertise to ensure more transparency and harmony in regulatory development,” the release explains.
Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP): This office is gaining more than 130 scientific, technical, bioinformatic, and information technology experts to work directly on the backlogs of over 504 new chemicals in review that are beyond the statutorily required time frames, as well as over 12,000 pesticide reviews that are well beyond their expected timelines. Through this change, the EPA states it’s “gaining the tools needed to advance a PFAS testing strategy to ensure that we are furthering our understanding of PFAS and its impacts on human health and the environment. These organizational improvements provide better tools and capabilities to allow OCSPP to use computational and bioinformatic tools—and eventually artificial intelligence (AI) —to streamline and improve the review of chemicals and pesticides.”
Office of Water: Changes to the Office of Water will better align the development of regulations, guidance, and policy with the science that underpins it. The EPA is also elevating issues of cybersecurity, emergency response, and water reuse and conservation to ensure they’re receiving appropriate resources to address today’s pressing water issues.
Budget plans
Meanwhile, on May 2, 2025, the EPA announced its proposed fiscal year (FY) 2026 budget of $4.16 billion, a 54 percent decrease from the previous year. This proposed budget is the smallest on record since 1986.
As summarized by the ISHN, the proposed budget includes:
- “a $2.46 billion cut for the EPA’s clean and drinking water state revolving loan funds;
- a $1 billion cut in the agency’s categorical grants program;
- $254 million cut in funding for Superfund cleanup;
- $100 million cut for environmental justice;
- $90 million cut for Diesel Emissions Reduction Act grants;
- and $100 million cut from the agency’s atmospheric protection program.”
Congress must approve the proposed budget, and these requested budget cuts are expected to be reduced during Congressional negotiations.