US court blocks Trump administration plan to cut disaster agency workforce

US President Donald Trump has said he would like to abolish the agency.

People work at the Federal Emergency Management Agency headquarters in Washington, DC [File: Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP Photo]

A United States federal judge has ruled the Trump administration acted unlawfully by ordering job cuts at the federal agency in charge of responding to the country’s natural disasters.

On Friday, US District Judge Susan Illston in California said the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which oversees the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), exceeded its authority when it ordered personnel changes that effectively stripped the emergency agency of control over its own workforce.

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The ruling centres on thousands of temporary FEMA reservists who are called upon to help communities after hurricanes, wildfires, floods and other disasters.

Labor groups representing federal workers sued to block the administration’s decision to stop renewing many of those contracts.

After Hurricane Katrina battered parts of the US Gulf Coast in 2005, the US Congress strengthened FEMA’s independence. US federal law says DHS cannot substantially or significantly reduce the agency’s authority, responsibilities or functions.

Illston, who was appointed by former US President Bill Clinton, said the Trump administration had failed to provide what she described as a “reasoned” explanation for its decision to restrict FEMA’s ability to renew contracts. She also noted FEMA was projecting a workforce of 11,383 employees for the coming fiscal year — about half of its previous level — without a clear justification for the figure.

The dispute comes amid a broader effort by US President Donald Trump’s administration to reduce the size of the federal workforce. Trump has previously questioned the need for FEMA and suggested that states, not the federal government, should assume greater responsibility for disaster preparedness.

The ruling did not immediately order the administration to reverse the cuts or impose penalties. Illston said those issues would be considered in a separate decision expected next month.

美国总统唐纳德·特朗普曾表示，他希望废除该机构。

人们在位于华盛顿特区的联邦紧急事务管理局总部工作。[图片：Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP Photo]

美国联邦法官裁定，特朗普政府下令削减负责应对该国自然灾害的联邦机构的职位是非法的。

周五，加利福尼亚州美国地区法官苏珊·伊尔斯顿表示，负责监管联邦紧急事务管理局（FEMA）的美国国土安全部（DHS）下令进行人事变动，实际上剥夺了该紧急事务机构对其自身员工的控制权，此举超越了其权限。

名单1/3：代理联邦紧急事务管理署署长戴维·理查森在任期不顺后辞职

问题 2（共 3 题）：特朗普为何解雇国土安全部部长克里斯蒂·诺姆？马克韦恩·穆林是谁？

列出特朗普违反命令的3项美国法院裁决中的3项，他违反命令的方式是给联邦紧急事务管理署（FEMA）的拨款附加条件。

该裁决的核心是数千名临时联邦紧急事务管理署 (FEMA) 后备人员，他们被召集来帮助社区应对飓风、野火、洪水和其他灾害。

代表联邦雇员的劳工团体提起诉讼，阻止政府停止续签其中许多合同的决定。

2005年卡特里娜飓风重创美国墨西哥湾沿岸部分地区后，美国国会加强了联邦紧急事务管理署（FEMA）的独立性。美国联邦法律规定，国土安全部不得大幅或显著削弱该机构的权力、职责或职能。

由美国前总统比尔·克林顿任命的伊尔斯顿表示，特朗普政府未能就其限制联邦紧急事务管理署（FEMA）续签合同的决定提供她所谓的“合理”解释。她还指出，FEMA预计下一财年的员工人数为11383人，约为此前水平的一半，但并未对此数字给出明确的理由。

这场争议正值美国总统特朗普政府大力削减联邦政府雇员规模之际。特朗普此前曾质疑联邦紧急事务管理署（FEMA）的必要性，并暗示各州而非联邦政府应承担更大的灾害防备责任。

该裁决并未立即责令政府撤销削减措施或施加处罚。伊尔斯顿表示，这些问题将在下个月的另一项裁决中予以考虑。