Agriculture
The Trump administration canceled a U.S. Department of Agriculture program that allowed California food banks to purchase produce from over 500 local farmers.
Education
The Trump administration laid off roughly 60 employees at the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights in San Francisco and terminated $148 million in grants to California schools and organizations that helped train teachers to address shortages.
Public Safety
The Trump administration fired Weather Service and Forest Service employees despite a deadly wildfire season in 2024.
March 2025: Trump Administration USDA Cuts Paused Delivery Of 330 Truckloads Of Food For California Food Banks. According to Palm Springs Desert Sun, "The U.S. Department of Agriculture has stopped 330 truckloads bound for food banks across California, according to the California Association of Food Banks. The shipments, some of a reported tens of thousands suspended nationwide, were expected within the next few months, said Monica White, president and CEO of Food Share, an Oxnard-based nonprofit. As of last week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture changed the status of the roughly 176,000 pounds of food for the Ventura County food bank, she said. 'They have not canceled it, but it's been put on hold,' White told the Ventura County Star on Tuesday." [Palm Springs Desert Sun, 3/27/25]
March 2025: Trump Administration Cancelled USDA Program That Allowed California Food Banks To Purchase Produce From Over 500 Local Farmers. According to the Fresno Bee, "An innovative program that paid small farmers to grow much-needed produce for California food banks is losing its federal funding as part of the Trump Administration’s efforts to slash government spending. Launched in 2023, the Farms Together Program was funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and distributed throughout the state by the California Association of Family Farmers, the California Association of Food Banks and Fresh Approach. California’s program was part of a nationwide effort funded by the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement. About $500 million was expected to be pumped into the program this year. The goal was to give small farmers, ranchers and fish operators the opportunity to sell their products to food assistance programs, including food banks, food pantries and food relief programs. [...] In California, the Farms Together program provided support to 533 small farmers who in turn produced food for 55 food banks and other community food partners. Of the more than 500 small farmers, about 100 were from the San Joaquin Valley." [Fresno Bee, 3/13/25]
March 2025: Yuba-Sutter Food Bank Faced Empty Shelves After Trump Administration Paused Funding For Emergency Food And Shelter Assistance Program. According to KOVR, "A federal funding pause has indefinitely left $130 million on hold for emergency food and shelter programs across the United States. A combined $115,000 between Yuba and Sutter counties is on a freeze, creating problems for roughly 15 organizations that focus on food and shelter, like the Yuba-Sutter Food Bank. 'Food banks across the board are struggling financially as a result of the federal pause,' said Maria Ball, the food bank's executive director. The Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) emergency food and shelter program has put a hold on federal funds across the nation. The Yuba-Sutter-Colusa United Way organization usually distributes the funds locally, but they received an email in late January saying the funds weren't coming yet, and it's unclear when they will. Ball, showing us the empty shelves in the food bank, said, 'When funding is where it needs to be, these shelves right here are full of pallets of food. As you can see, it's looking a little mean and lean out there." [KOVR, 3/11/25]
March 2025: Trump Administration Froze $2.5 Million In Food And Shelter Funding For Bay Area Nonprofits. According to Daily Republic, "More than $2.5 million for Bay Area emergency food and shelter programs have been frozen by the Trump administration – close to $200,000 in Solano County. It is part of more than $117 million in emergency funding that has been frozen nationwide, funds that were approved by Congress in April 2024, United Way Bay Area reported. 'We were in the process of making grants to our Bay Area Emergency Food and Shelter Program partners for 2025 when we learned the funds were placed on an ‘indefinite pause,’' Laura Escobar, vice president of Safety Net Services at United Way Bay Area, said in a statement." [Daily Republic, 3/11/25]
April 2025: Kern County, California, Nonprofits Reported Cuts In Service After Trump Administration Froze Emergency Food And Shelter Assistance Program. According to KGET, "Amid continued federal funding cuts from the Trump administration, the future of various federal programs remains unclear. In Bakersfield, families seeking food and housing assistance are already being turned away. Food pantries and organizations in town predict the impact will only grow — perhaps within the next month. For families struggling to make ends meet, the Salvation Army in Bakersfield is often the last glimpse of hope. [...] Consequently, it’s already buying less food, and there will likely be a trickle-down effect to the 150 agency partners they distribute food to. It warned families may be impacted within the next month. Lauren Skidmore of The Open Door Network told 17 News due to the uncertainty in EFSP funds, the organization has seen an impact in food purchases for its domestic violence and homeless shelters." [KGET, 4/7/25]
March 2025: Trump Administration Fired Glenn County USDA Employee Who Helped Farmers With Soil Conservation. According to the Chico Enterprise-Record, " When Emily Wine left work on her birthday, Feb. 13, the soil conservationist at the U.S. Department of Agriculture Glenn County Farm Service Agency in Willows, expected to return on Valentine’s Day for another ordinary day of work at the office but what greeted her when she got to the office was anything but normal. 'I’d been fired by email the night before at 8 o’clock,' said Wine. [...] 'My termination email said that I was fired due to ‘poor performance,’' said Wine. 'But I was so new I had not even had a performance review yet. I talked to other people who had been fired, and all the emails had the same wording because the only easy way to fire people in the federal government is with evidence of poor performance. There was no evidence.’ [...] 'My job title, soil conservationist, was not a good title. Really my job would better be described as conservation planner,' said Wine. 'Generally my job was to work with farmers to design and get them the available federal funding for projects to improve environmental quality through addressing resource concerns on their property.'" [Chico Enterprise-Record, 3/11/25]
March 2025: Trump Administration Closed Salinas-Area USDA Office. According to the Salinas Californian, "The Department of Government Efficiency, commonly known as DOGE, is bringing government spending cuts to Salinas In a list released in early March, DOGE announced it terminated an office space lease for the USDA Salinas Service Center office. USDA Service Centers are designed to be a 'single location' where customers can access the services provided by the Farm Service Agency, Natural Resources Conservation Service, and the Rural Development agencies. The agency has office space at 744 La Guardia St., Bldg. A in Salinas, according to the USDA website. Information about the lease ending isn't reflected on the USDA website. The office space is roughly 7,829 square feet, according to DOGE. Elon Musk's DOGE states the federal government is saving more than $71,800 by terminating the lease that costs roughly $172,395 a year. " [Salinas Californian, 3/7/25]
February 2025: Federal Workers In California Raised The Alarm On Mass Terminations.
February 2025: Trump Administration Froze At Least $22 Million In Grant Funding For California’s Central Coast Communities. According to the San Louis Obispo Tribune, “Adding to a growing list of entities impacted by Trump administration budget cuts, energy and infrastructure projects across the Central Coast are being threatened by a flurry of executive orders freezing millions of dollars in federal funds needed to complete the work, federal representatives said. At least $22 million in federal grant money is currently frozen on the Central Coast, Congressman Salud Carbajal, D-Santa Barbara, said in a news release last week. Since taking office, President Donald Trump's sweeping executive directives have caused nationwide confusion as to the availability of federal funds. Although the Trump administration rescinded an Office of Management and Budget memo that instructed all federal agencies to pause the delivery of all federal funding, the directive appears to still be impacting grantees across San Luis Obispo County, and multiple other executive orders still on the books are blocking federal funds specifically for local infrastructure and energy projects. Project managers from across the Central Coast have reported freezes on critical program funding to their state representatives. The Community Environmental Council in Santa Barbara County has been working on a project to improve access to electric vehicles and other clean energy technologies for almost two years with fiscal support from the federal government. Now, the project faces a $2.5 million funding deficit, CEO Sigrid Wright told local representatives.” [San Louis Obispo Tribune, 2/20/25]
April 2025: Trump Administration Fired Every Staffer In Office That Manages Program Helping Californians Pay Their Heating And Cooling Bill. According to Jefferson Public Radio, "This month the Trump administration fired all 25 staff overseeing the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program. The federally-funded program, created by Congress in 1981, helps low-income families around the country pay for utilities like heat or electricity. It also provides assistance for weatherizing homes. The staff overhaul has worried county-level providers tasked with providing those federal funds. 'It's really a very confusing time,' said Val Martinez, executive director at the Redwood Community Action Agency in Humboldt County. She said the news was shocking because Congress had already funded LIHEAP for 2025. 'Why the administration would choose to fire everybody who's running a program that's authorized and also fully funded… I don't understand,' Martinez said. [...] Since 2023, the Redwood Community Action Agency has assisted over 4,000 households in Humboldt with accessing LIHEAP funds, according to Martinez. However, she noted the funding available through her organization is only enough to help less than 7% of the eligible population. 'We're continuing to help folks. We're doing the best that we can with monies that are available,' Martinez said. 'That's what our policy has been and will continue to be.'" [Jefferson Public Radio, 4/8/25]
February 2025: Employees At The Whiskeytown National Recreation Area In California Were Fired By The Trump Administration Before Tourist Season. According to the Redding Record Searchlight, "While other federal agencies in Shasta County operate under a cloak of silence, an official at Whiskeytown National Recreation Area confirmed the Trump administration has 'let go' some employees who work there. Whiskeytown Superintendent Josh Hoines said he wasn't sure how the cutbacks in workforce would affect operations at the recreation area during the tourist season. 'We are going to do everything we can to let the dust settle, figure out how to minimize the impacts to visitors for the summer. Beyond that, I don't really know yet. It's still pretty fresh, and we're trying to understand what it looks like,' Hoines said." [Redding Record Searchlight, 2/22/25]
March 2025: Elk Grove School Board President Stated Trump Administration Department Of Education Cuts Were Already Hurting District. According to the Sacramento Bee, “The problems aren't impending -- they're here, according to local leaders. Elk Grove Unified School District Board President Michael Vargas said that their district has already been impacted by the lack of workforce at the federal level. Elk Grove Unified's family communication department used to rely heavily on support from an equivalent office at the DOE, but that resource has disappeared. ‘At the administrative level, trying to connect and communicate with families and keep families in the loop of everything that's going on is a huge priority for the district,’ Vargas said. ‘And so not having that support from the federal level is a big deal, right? That's a big pain point for us.’ Vargas said that the district relies heavily on data coming from the DOE's research arm, which lost 105 of its 167 employees, to make budgetary and programming decisions. Vargas worries that losing that federal data will impede their ability to make decisions that best serve each of the smaller communities that make up Elk Grove's school population of around 62,000 kids. Finding and synthesizing that data would be both labor intensive and expensive for the district to do itself. ‘There will be students who are impacted by that loss of information, because they're going to run into a problem that we will not have expected,’ he said. ‘Our learning vision is to support every student, every day, in every class. And if we're not able to do that, if we don't have the data to be able to do that, students will fall through the cracks.’” [Sacramento Bee, 3/14/25]
March 2025: Trump Administration Executive Order Called For Reduction To Federal Agency That Gave $26 Million To California Libraries And Museums In 2024. According to KESQ, "An agency that has provided federal money to Coachella Valley libraries and museums is facing cuts after President Trump issued an executive order slashing the Institute of Museum and Library Services. According to the American Library Association, the Institute is the nation's only federal agency that provides funding for America's libraries. In 2024, the Institute provided $266.7 million in grants to museums and libraries across the nation. California received the most money during this time, with $26.4 million being awarded to the state's institutions. Historically, the agency has provided funding for many of the valley's libraries and museums, including the Palm Springs Art Museum, several tribal nations, and even the Living Desert Zoo." [KESQ, 3/18/25]
March 2025: Santa Clara County Head Start Teachers Were Laid Off After Uncertainty Over Trump Spending Cuts. According to the San José Spotlight, "Santa Clara County teachers and local leaders are warning of chaos after mass layoffs have decimated a critical preschool program for families living in poverty, known as Head Start. Head Start staff received pink slips around March 15 amid uncertainty as to whether the federal program under the Trump administration will reimburse the Santa Clara County Office of Education for the costs. The education office’s top officials have publicly expressed confidence the grant funding will be renewed, but said they can’t hire staff for the next school year without that guarantee." [San José Spotlight, 3/19/25]
February 2025: Trump NIH Cuts Could Cost California Universities, Research Centers, And Companies Almost $800 Million In Scientific Research Funding. According to a New York Times’ analysis, the Trump Administration’s proposal to cap NIH indirect funding costs at 15% could cause California colleges, research institutes, and companies to lose $796 million in funding. [New York Times, 2/13/25]
April 2025: Trump Administration Terminated $190,000 Grant To CSU Bakersfield To Train Teachers About Local History. According to KBAK, "Faculty and staff at California State University, Bakersfield (CSUB) were taken by surprise, when they learned that the Trump administration had terminated a $190,000 federal grant. The grant, which was part of the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), funded a program designed to educate teachers about the migrant and farm history in the Central Valley. Oliver Rosales, a professor at Bakersfield College and one of the educators involved in the program, expressed his dismay at the decision. 'Our program officer didn't even know the grant was terminated because the letter was sent directly by Doge, and then again, 80% of that staff is laid off, so we don't have anybody to really communicate with,' he said. The program, titled 'California Dreamin: Migration, Work and Settlement in the Other California,' aimed to highlight the stories of migrant workers and share the rich legacy rooted in the region. Rosales noted the program's significance, saying, 'We had over 300 applicants from across America. K-12 educators. We read their applications. They were excited to come to Kern County and learn about Central Valley history and to take it back to their classrooms across America. So this is part of an attack, in my view, on the Central Valley.' Rosales emphasized the importance of the program's content, which included topics such as the story of agriculture, migrant labor, and significant historical figures like Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta." [KBAK, 4/9/25]
April 2025: Trump Administration Slashed 90% Of California Nonprofit’s Budget That Supports Local History And Cultural Programs. According to KQED, "On Friday afternoon, April 4, recipients of California Humanities grants received an email announcing the sudden cancellation of their funding from the statewide nonprofit. 'We are currently unable to issue any outstanding grant payments,' the email read. 'All grants to state humanities and jurisdictions, including California Humanities have been suspended.' California Humanities receives over 90% of its funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), which on April 3 canceled millions of dollars in previously awarded federal grants to arts and cultural groups across the country. [...] California Humanities was established in 1975 as a nonpartisan affiliate of the NEH, and has awarded over $44 million in grants during its 50 years. In addition to the California Documentary Project, the organization currently funds the programs Humanities for All, the Library Innovation Lab, Literature & Medicine, and Emerging Journalist Fellowships." [KQED, 4/8/25]
March 2025: Trump Administration Laid Off Roughly 60 Employees At Department Of Education’s Office For Civil Rights In San Francisco. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, “Staff at regional Department of Education offices for civil rights enforcement, for example, were locked out Wednesday, including the one in San Francisco, with reports that those sites would be shuttered. That would likely mean investigations into discrimination could be curtailed. At the San Francisco office, two-thirds of the 120 staff members were terminated, said one employee.” [San Francisco Chronicle, 3/13/25]
March 2025: Trump Administration Terminated $148 Million In Grants To California Schools And Organizations That Helped Train Teachers To Address Shortages. According to The Mercury News, "California Attorney General Rob Bonta and attorneys general from seven other Democratic states are suing the Trump administration, claiming it illegally terminated federal grant funding for K-12 teacher preparation programs – a decision the attorneys general say will ultimately hurt students at a time when the nation is already facing teacher shortages. The grants provide stipends or other supports for individuals training to become teachers, which help with efforts to recruit and retain educators and increases the number of qualified teachers – especially for hard-to-fill positions, Bonta said during a press conference at the state Department of Justice building in downtown Los Angeles on Thursday, March 6. [...] These programs educate, place and provide supports to aspiring or new teachers in hard-to-staff schools, particularly in rural and underserved communities, and in hard-to-fill courses like math and special education. [...] In California, institutions and organizations that provide teacher preparatory programs were informed that they would lose a total of $148 million, according to Bonta, who is co-leading the multi-state lawsuit." [Mercury News, 3/7/25]
March 2025: Trump Administration Cut Funding For Program To Improve After-Graduation Outcomes For Students With Disabilities. According to Chalkbeat, "When teens and young adults with disabilities in California’s Poway Unified School District heard about a new opportunity to get extra help planning for life after high school, nearly every eligible student signed up. The program, known as Charting My Path for Future Success, aimed to fill a major gap in education research about what kinds of support give students nearing graduation the best shot at living independently, finding work, or continuing their studies. Students with disabilities finish college at much lower rates than their non-disabled peers, and often struggle to tap into state employment programs for adults with disabilities, said Stacey McCrath-Smith, a director of special education at Poway Unified, which had 135 students participating in the program. So the extra help, which included learning how to track goals on a tool designed for high schoolers with disabilities, was much needed. Charting My Path launched earlier this school year in Poway Unified and 12 other school districts. The salaries of 61 school staff nationwide, and the training they received to work with nearly 1,100 high schoolers with disabilities for a year and a half, was paid for by the U.S. Department of Education. [...] Then the Trump administration pulled the plug. Charting My Path was among more than 200 Education Department contracts and grants terminated over the last two weeks by the Trump administration’s U.S. DOGE Service." [Chalkbeat, 2/25/25]
February 2025: Trump Administration Terminated Two Multi-Million Grants To Train Special Education And Bilingual Teachers In San Luis Obispo County. According to the San Luis Obispo Tribune, "The federal government slashed two Cal Poly grants targeted at getting qualified teachers into local special education and bilingual education classrooms, documents provided to The Tribune show. [...] Grant recipients say the cuts could have detrimental impacts on already struggling SLO County classrooms — and most of all, English learners and students with disabilities. [...] Cal Poly’s $4.6 million INSPIRE grant aimed to bolster the workforce in SLO County schools — especially in the field of special education. California has suffered a chronic special education teacher shortage since the ‘70s, said Crutchfield. Over the last decade, around 25% of the special education workforce has retired — and the shortage was further compounded during and after COVID. [...] According to Jensen, the grant would have supported 1,350 teachers and at least 75,600 students in SLO County over five years by providing training, support, mentorship and micro-credentialing opportunities to local educators and school leaders. It would have touched the lives of thousands more as the impacts of having fully staffed classrooms and fully qualified teachers began to take effect, both locally and statewide. [...] The TIER grant — the second education grant to be eliminated — provided living wage stipends to aspiring special education and bilingual classroom teachers in local high-needs schools. Residents of the program’s first cohort landed jobs in districts in SLO County and Santa Maria. Losing the TIER grant resulted in another $500,000 reduction in support for local special education and bilingual classrooms, according to Cal Poly associate professor Tina Cheuk." [San Luis Obispo Tribune, 2/19/25]
March 2025: Leaked Forest Service Documents Stated Almost 4,000 California Campsites Could Close Because Of Trump Administration Spending Cuts And Layoffs. According to the New York Times, “In California, summer could be on the chopping block. Almost 4,000 campsites across many of California’s 18 national forests could close for part or all of the summer season, according to an internal United States Forest Service spreadsheet viewed by The New York Times on Friday. These potential shutdowns follow a wave of federal government firings and budget freezes last month that have led to staffing shortages and stalled contracts for basic services like pumping toilets. While national forests are sometimes less well-known than national parks, they’re often more accessible, with a wider variety of uses and lower fees to enter and camp. They attract motorcyclists, day hikers, ATV users, horseback riders, boaters and backpackers, as well as ranchers who graze cattle, foresters who log trees and even miners who prospect for gold. In an internal email from the Forest Service on Feb. 18, forest supervisors for Region 5, which oversees California, were instructed to list public facilities that could close this year as a result of budget cuts and staff shortages. The United States Forest Service did not respond to a request for comment for this article. The email noted that ‘unforeseen impacts and changed conditions, as well as financial limitations may render some sites unsafe, or too challenging to open to full capacity in 2025.’ It was sent less than a week after at least 2,000 employees were terminated by the Department of Government Efficiency, led by Elon Musk.” [New York Times, 3/5/25]
March 2025: Trump Administration Reportedly Targeted 62 Grants To California Environmental Nonprofits For Termination. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, “Sixty-two California grants are on a list of 400 the Environmental Protection Agency has targeted for termination, according to an internal filing obtained by Democratic members of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works on Wednesday and reviewed by the Chronicle. If terminated, grantees including several Bay Area nonprofits and local governments could lose access to millions in funding previously authorized under the Inflation Reduction Act, passed by former President Joe Biden. That could mean canceling projects and laying off staff, grant recipients told the Chronicle.” [San Francisco Chronicle, 3/27/25]
February 2025: Trump Administration Fired Every Forest Service Technician At Station In Stanislaus National Park Who Performed Critical Maintenance And Safety Work. According to SFGATE, "Michelle Beutler cleared 67 trees off a U.S. Forest Service road in two days. It was the spring of 2023, after a record-breaking winter in the Stanislaus National Forest in California’s Sierra Nevada. Beutler, 59, worked alone with a chain saw to remove every fallen tree on a 10-mile stretch of road between the town of Long Barn in Tuolumne County and the popular Hull Creek Campground. She single-handedly finished the work so the road could open in time for Memorial Day. As a recreation technician based out of the Summit Ranger Station in the Stanislaus National Forest, Beutler’s job was to clean toilets, pick up trash and maintain recreation sites and campgrounds up and down Sonora Pass. She’d typically drive her Forest Service truck 100 miles a day. She sprayed pit toilets with a fire hose. She wiped away graffiti and removed thousands of pounds of house trash, old furniture and useless stuff that people dumped in the forest. She extinguished hundreds of abandoned and illegal campfires. She assisted law enforcement during emergency accidents, helping officers navigate a swath of rugged forest land that she grew up on and knows intimately. But last week, Beutler lost her job. The Trump administration has fired thousands of people like Beutler who work for the Forest Service, hollowing out an agency that manages 193 million acres of land across the country — roughly equivalent to the size of Texas. California’s 18 national forests alone add up to 20 million acres. Beutler was one of two recreation technicians in the Summit Ranger District. They both lost their jobs this week. 'There’s nobody left in our position to go out and do the work that we did,' Beutler said, noting that trash will accumulate and toilets in campgrounds will fester. 'Don’t go camping this summer, I wouldn’t advise it,' she added. " [SFGATE, 2/21/25]
March 2025: Trump Administration Fired Workers At Yosemite National Park. According to KXTV, "Following federal layoffs at Yosemite National Park, there are still many questions about the impacts of eliminating these employees. In a letter to the Department of the Interior, Democratic U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA) is asking for a better visitor experience at Yosemite National Park, and he believes it starts with proper staffing." [KXTV, 3/12/25]
February 2025: Trump Administration Paused At Least $4 Billion In Relief Funding For Communities Dependent On The Colorado River. According to KUNC, "An executive order issued in the early days of the Trump administration hit pause on at least $4 billion set aside to protect the flow of the Colorado River. The funds from the Inflation Reduction Act were offered to protect the flow of the water supply for about 40 million people and a massive agricultural economy. With the money on hold, Colorado River users are worried about the future of the dwindling water supply. The river is shrinking due to climate change. The nation’s two largest reservoirs, Lake Mead and Lake Powell, created by dams on the Colorado River, have reached record low levels in recent years amid a megadrought spanning more than two decades. If water levels fall much lower, they could lose the ability to generate hydropower within the massive dams that hold them back, or even lose the ability to pass water downstream. The 2022 Inflation Reduction Act allowed Biden to designate $4 billion for Colorado River programs, funding farmers, cities and Native American tribes to conserve Colorado River water by leaving it in those reservoirs. The payments are compensation for lost income." [KUNC, 2/26/25]
Trump Administration Fired 7 Employees At Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area Before A Federal Judge Reinstated Them. According to The Acorn, "The Conejo Valley’s majestic peaks and scenic trails are not immune to the Trump administration’s cuts to the National Park Service, although exactly how the local parklands might be affected remains unknown. From an area lobbyist to a nationwide advocacy group, park advocates are concerned with possible changes on the horizon for the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, which includes a large swath of land from Calabasas into eastern Ventura County. Though the National Park Service itself would not provide any details to The Acorn, those close to the park and its workings say roughly 10% of the SMMNRA’s 70-person staff received notices of termination in February, and although they are set to be reinstated, the challenges to the world’s largest urban national park are not yet over. 'These positions are being rehired but it’s not without causing tremendous destruction to the park at a time when it’s already understaffed and gearing up for the busiest time of the year,' said Dennis Arguelles, the National Parks Conservation Association’s Southern California director. 'This has affected people’s lives.'" [Acorn, 4/3/25]
February 2025: Trump Administration Fired 3 Federal Employees At UC Santa Cruz Coastal Science Campus. According to Santa Cruz Local, "At least three federal workers with ties to the UC Santa Cruz Coastal Science Campus were dismissed from their jobs in February, including a NOAA employee working on greater efficiency with nonprofit partners. The other two employees were Meredith McPherson, a U.S. Geological Survey physical scientist who was mapping reefs, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Science Communications Specialist Jerimiah Oetting. All were probationary workers for less than one year who had fewer job protections. None of the three said they knew why they were singled out." [Santa Cruz Local, 3/14/25]
March 2025: Trump Administration Laid Off 6 Monterey County NOAA Employees Including A Meteorologist And Multiple Scientists. According to Monterey County Now, "Three of his colleagues at the NWS Monterey station – which serves 11 counties, home to roughly 8 million people – were terminated on Thursday, Feb. 27. The firings were part of widespread termination notices to employees within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Another impacted local agency is NOAA Fisheries, where three employees were terminated on Feb. 27. All six were on probation, a standard one-year period for civilian federal employees. They all received emails with the language: 'The agency finds that you are not fit for continued employment because your ability, knowledge and/or skills do not fit the agency’s current needs.' [...] The terminated employees at NOAA are a meteorologist, a facilities technician and an administrative assistant. At NOAA Fisheries, they are a physical scientist, a marine biologist and a communications specialist. No employees were fired from the local office of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, another NOAA division.” [Monterey County Now, 3/6/25]
April 2025: The Trump Administration Cut Over $10 Million In Public Health Funding For Kern County. According to ABC 23 Bakersfield, “Kern County is bracing for impacts to its public health services after receiving a sudden stop work order from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, halting roughly $10.5 million in federal funding.” [ABC 23 Bakersfield, 4/23/25]
April 2025: Trump Administration Cancelled Almost $1 Billion In Funding To California Health Agencies Including Child Vaccines And Substance Abuse Treatment Programs. According to the Los Angeles Times, "California and a coalition of other states sued the Trump administration Tuesday over its plans to cut billions of dollars in federal public health grants designed to make states more resilient to infectious disease, and accused the administration of overreaching its authority by clawing back funding already allocated by Congress. The pullback in funding is a devastating hit to local health departments, many of whom are dealing with large and novel outbreaks ranging from COVID-19 to bird flu and measles. Agencies in California alone stand to lose nearly $1 billion.” [Los Angeles Times, 4/1/25]
April 2025: Trump Administration Terminated Grant That Supported Nurse Program For Homeless In San Francisco’s Tenderloin District. According to Mission Local, "A team of roving nurses known for their outreach work in the Tenderloin is pausing its operations due to federal funding cuts, Mission Local has learned. [...] The program, led by University of California, San Francisco nurses since 2021 and operated in partnership with Code Tenderloin and GLIDE, offers various vaccinations, wound care, overdose prevention, and referrals to services on on the streets and at pop-ups on Thursdays and Saturdays. 'This week we were notified by The Center at Sierra Health Foundation that federal funds supporting the Covid-19 Mitigation Project had been terminated by the federal government,' said GLIDE’s Chief Program Officer Lillian Mark. 'Without this funding, Code TL had to sunset their roving staff to assist with this low-barrier, street-level access to these critical services immediately.' The Code Tenderloin ambassadors served as liaisons between the medical workers and the community. The grant, Mark said, was expected to end on April 30, but it is unclear whether it could have been renewed. Messages to Code Tenderloin were not immediately answered." [Mission Local, 4/4/25]
April 2025: Trump Administration Spending Cuts Left Sacramento County With $26 Million Shortfall In Public Health Budget. According to KXTV, "The Sacramento County Department of Health Services could lose about $26 million due to a nationwide order to rescind Health and Human Services funding from states. Sacramento health officials are scrambling for answers on how best to fund essential education initiatives and infrastructure to tackle infectious diseases after being abruptly notified the HHS funds will no longer be available. [...] The money, first appropriated by Congress during the COVID pandemic, has been used by Sacramento County to fund three areas: addressing health disparities for communities disproportionately affected by chronic diseases, updating epidemiology infrastructure and providing mobile vaccination clinics. 'We received the notification on March 24, so all work has stopped that was related to this grant funding,' said Dr. Olivia Kasirye, the public health officer for Sacramento County." [KXTV, 4/5/25]
According to KXTV, "Kasirye said most of the funding has already been allocated for the infrastructure projects to track infectious diseases and potential outbreaks throughout Sacramento, but how to pay for ongoing maintenance is in flux. She says there have been no conversations with state officials to see if they could provide funds to fill the gaps." [KXTV, 4/5/25]
April 2025: Trump Administration Terminated San Diego County Wastewater Analysis Grant To Monitor Infectious Diseases. According to the San Diego Union-Tribune, "A coalition of top scientists loaded its last set of wastewater samples for analysis Sunday after receiving the final word from San Diego County late last week that the work should cease due to a nationwide clawback of federal public health funds. Since February 2021, the San Diego Epidemiology and Research for COVID Health program (SEARCH), a collaboration of UC San Diego, Scripps Research Institute and the genomics program at Rady Children’s Hospital, have used advanced science to analyze wastewater samples collected from three different treatment plants in San Diego County. Samples have been used to estimate both the amount and type of viruses shed by the region’s 3.3 million residents. What started with coronavirus during the COVID-19 pandemic expanded to include MPOX in 2022 and research efforts are underway on using the same genetic analysis techniques to detect influenza, hepatitis and measles and other pathogens. But those efforts ground to a halt Monday after researchers received word that the roughly $400,000 per year provided by the county’s public health department would cease, a casualty of an initiative from the Department of Government Efficiency’s cuts to a national 'Epidemiology and Laboratory Capacity' program run by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. While other wastewater testing services will still be available, San Diego County’s effort provided more information on the types of viruses circulating in the community. Dr. Louise Laurent, a perinatal research director at UC San Diego, and Kristian Andersen, director of infectious disease genomics at Scripps Research, said Monday that the funding pullback forces SEARCH to stop operating." [San Diego Union-Tribune, 4/7/25]
March 2025: Trump Administration Cancelled San Francisco Researcher’s Grant To Study Side Effects Of Shingles Vaccine. According to the San Francisco Business Times, “Over a three-week period, the Trump administration stripped away millions of dollars in National Institutes of Health grants to California researchers, leading to job cuts and a hurried search for new funding for studies centering on HIV, Covid-19, transgender adolescents and more. The White House dictate ostensibly to cut ‘wasteful spending’ in the federal government has instead resulted in a willy-nilly purge of anything that smacks of diversity, equity, inclusion and other buzzwords redlined by the president. [...] Dr. Nisha Acharya, an ophthalmologist and professor at the University of California, San Francisco, for example, must let go three of her research staff. Her lab was studying the impact of GSK PLC's shingles vaccine Shingrix in a subset of patients who feel the painful, potentially blinding, effects of the virus in the eye when the NIH cancelled the grant supporting the research.” [San Francisco Business Times, 3/27/25]
March 2025: Trump Administration Cancelled San Diego-Area Research Grants On HIV Treatments And Youth Suicide Prevention. According to KSWB, "A handful of research projects at two local universities and the County of San Diego were among those which lost federal funding under the Trump administration, according to a list by the National Institutes of Health. The list includes three NIH-funded projects at the University of California, San Diego and four at San Diego State University. The project topics range from HIV treatment interventions and how hormones affect a crucial system in the human body that regulates reproduction, to suicide prevention for minority youth. Also impacted by the grant cuts was a national initiative to address COVID-19 health disparities among high-risk and underserved populations, of which the county was a part of." [KSWB, 3/31/25]
April 2025: The Trump Administration Cut A $2 Million Grant For Violence Prevention And Intervention In Fresno, California. According to ABC30, “When Fresno EOC Advance Peace program manager Aaron Foster learned the group's $2 million federal grant had been revoked, he didn't believe it. ‘Devastated, didn't see it coming. I thought it was a scam,’ said Aaron Foster. But it was real. The cut represents about half of the program's budget. It was a three-year grant, and less than half of it had been dispersed. Over the past few years, Advance Peace has grown in the Fresno Community, and so has its work helping reduce violent crime in Fresno. ‘We reach out to the people that are most likely to settle disputes with violence, and we give them alternatives, and it's been successful,’ said Foster. The 18-month program targets likely shooters and helps lead them away from violence and towards a more productive lifestyle.” [ABC30, 4/29/25]
March 2025: Trump Administration Laid Off Employees At Agency That Manages California’s Water Infrastructure. According to the Los Angeles Times, "The Trump administration has ordered firings and buyouts at the federal agency that operates water infrastructure in California, potentially jeopardizing the agency’s ability to manage dams and deliver water, according to Central Valley water officials. The job cuts at the Bureau of Reclamation were ordered by Elon Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, according to two bureau employees with knowledge of the situation who were not authorized to speak publicly. The bureau, which employs about 1,000 people, is set to lose about 100 employees in California through terminations and buyouts, eliminating about 10% of its regional staff, one of the employees said. But larger workforce reductions are planned, and the bureau has been ordered to prepare plans to cut its staff by 40%, this person said. Those targeted first for dismissal have been employees in their first year and others who have been at the agency the shortest. Internal documents reviewed by The Times show that the positions being eliminated include maintenance mechanics, engineers, fish biology specialists and others. 'It’s going to significantly impact our operations,' said one Bureau of Reclamation employee." [Los Angeles Times, 3/4/25]
February 2025: Experts Stated Trump Administration Forest Service Layoffs Would Leave California Less Prepared For Fire Season. According to KQED, "Biologists, trail builders, maintenance workers, foresters, mapping experts — these are all examples of positions that have been terminated in widespread layoffs affecting U.S. Forest Service employees. A spokesperson with the U.S. Department of Agriculture confirmed to NPR and Oregon Public Broadcasting that 2,000 mostly probationary workers were fired in the Forest Service, though the union representing them estimates 3,400 are being laid off. Some workers were told low performance was the grounds for their dismissal despite receiving excellent performance reviews, according to documents seen by Reuters. These layoffs, experts said, leave Californians at greater risk of fire on federal lands and will delay mitigation projects designed to protect communities. Riva Duncan, a longtime Forest Service manager and fire chief who is now retired, said there was 'no doubt' communities near federal lands would be less prepared going into the 2025 fire season. The firing of thousands of federal workers is part of the Trump administration’s plan to dramatically scale back the size of the federal government. The orders were meant to exclude firefighters, but many of those Forest Service workers who were laid off were trained and qualified in wildland firefighting and would step in as backup firefighters on crews or engines when fires got intense and resources were stretched thin, providing surge capacity. If firefighting units — such as an engine or the elite ground crews known as hotshots — are not fully staffed, they can’t be assigned to a fire." [KQED, 2/21/25]
April 2025: Trump Administration Terminated $35 Million Wildfire Prevention Grant In Napa County. According to KGO-TV, "In the North Bay, a federal grant program designed to help reduce the threat from wildfires has been abruptly canceled for Napa County. The surprise move is leaving officials perplexed and disappointed, because it's putting funding for wildfire prevention in jeopardy. 'So the fires in '17 came down right here, the 2020 fires came down here and jumped across the valley,' said Chris Morisoli. Rutherford grape grower Chris Morisoli showed us where devastating wildfires have made their mark on the Napa Valley. As a volunteer firefighter, he knows the next wildfire is inevitable. 'One thing's for sure, it's not a matter of if, it's a matter of when. Fires are a constant reality and threat in Napa County, if we don't get ahead of that early with prevention, you know the consequence,' said Morisoli. But a federal decision to cancel Napa County's funding grant for wildfire prevention is leaving millions of dollars for mitigation work in jeopardy. 'This is a $50 million investment focused on mitigating large scale wildfires in our communities,' said Napa County CEO, Ryan Alsop. Alsop says the elimination of FEMA's Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities or BRIC grant program, came as a total surprise. 'This is a big deal, unfortunately we had to read about it on Friday, nobody called to tell us, they still haven't,' said Alsop. [...] He says the $35 Million grant would have leveraged a local match from the county and private funds." [KGO-TV, 4/7/25]
February 2025: Trump Administration Laid Off Two Los Angeles Federal Employees Responsible For Public Communication During Recent Wildfires. According to NBC Los Angeles, "Two local former U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service employees who worked to keep the public informed during last month’s disastrous wildfires are part of the thousands of federal workers who were recently laid off. Celeste Morales, a former public affairs specialist, and Jasmin Dominguez, a former fire data analyst, say they were stunned when they received an email announcing their termination. The move comes as part of the Trump administration’s effort to reduce the federal workforce by laying off thousands of employees." [NBC Los Angeles, 2/26/25]
February 2025: Two National Weather Service Employees Based In San Francisco Were Fired By The Trump Administration. According to KQED, "They include at least two people at the National Weather Service’s Bay Area office — a meteorologist and an administrative support assistant. The two employees were relatively new to their jobs and received emails notifying them of their termination before their supervisors were aware. They were given until 5 p.m. Thursday before being locked out of their emails and accounts, according to Dalton Behringer, the Bay Area office’s union steward for the National Weather Service Employees Organization." [KQED, 2/28/25]
February 2025: Mojave Desert Land Trust Officials Condemned Trump Firings And Effects On Public Lands. According to Victorville Daily Press, "Nearly 1,000 National Park Service employees were laid off ahead of the agency's busy summer season as part of President Donald Trump's efforts to downsize the federal government. Recent emails from the Department of the Interior allegedly informed federal park employees that a second round of terminations would follow. Krystian Lahage, Public Policy Officer for the Mojave Desert Land Trust, said they are 'closely watching this situation' and are 'deeply concerned over federal staff firings.' 'The Mojave Desert Land Trust strongly opposes the Trump Administration’s decision to fire thousands of employees serving our public lands,' Kelly Herbinson said in a press release, Executive Director of Mojave Desert Land Trust. ‘These actions put landscapes at risk that are championed and beloved by our communities and visitors alike. They exacerbate long-standing funding and staffing shortages for our nation’s public lands. We are deeply saddened by the toll this action is taking on morale among federal employees who have dedicated their careers to preserving this country’s most treasured landscapes.’” [Victorville Daily Press, 2/27/25]
February 2025: Trump Administration Fired Six Employees At Joshua Tree National Park. According to Victorville Daily Press, "Six probationary employees were fired at Joshua Tree National Park following what many are calling the 'Valentine's Day Massacre' on Feb. 14. [Victorville Daily Press, 2/27/25]
February 2025: Joshua Park Employees Reportedly Received Warning Of Layoffs For Employees With Severe Disabilities Known As “Schedule A” Workers. According to Victorville Daily Press, "According to Joshua Tree's local radio station, Z107.7 FM, park employees were allegedly notified on Tuesday, Feb. 25 via email from the Department of the Interior of a possible second round of terminations later this week for 'schedule A employees.' Schedule A employees include people with severe physical, psychiatric, or intellectual abilities as well as interpreters and other disability assistants according to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM)." [Victorville Daily Press, 2/27/25]
February 2025: Former Social Security Administration Employee In California Expressed Concern About The Impact The Trump Administration's Cuts To SSA Would Have On Benefits.
March 2025: Trump Administration Fired Disabled Veteran From Job At Palo Alto VA Center Before Reversing Course After Public Outcry. According to Local News Matters, "A disabled veteran who was recently dismissed from his position at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ Palo Alto Health Care System and got an invite from a South Bay congressman to attend President Donald Trump’s congressional address Tuesday received an email just hours before the event informing him that he got his job back. Daniel Sandecki, who suffered an injury during his 10 years of service in the U.S. Army, was one of the 2,400 federal VA workers nationwide who lost their jobs last month in one of Trump’s attempts to cut federal spending. Sandecki was hired last October as an emergency management specialist for VA Palo Alto Health Care System, a highly competitive position he landed after a seven-month hiring process. The job involves managing crises and ensuring continuity of care during emergencies such as power outages, earthquakes and fires. 'I basically obtained my dream job after working about 15 years to build the training, experience, and knowledge to be able to be competitive for this position,' he said in an interview. Four months into his new job, he received an email notifying him that his position was terminated immediately for 'performance-related issues,' Sandecki said. [...] On Tuesday morning, Liccardo posted a video to social media from Washington, D.C. In which he spoke about Sandecki’s firing and how Sandecki would be his guest later that evening at Trump’s congressional address. Two hours later, Sandecki was notified that his termination was rescinded and he was getting his job back. 'The Trump Administration terminated Daniel Sandecki three weeks ago, but they quickly reversed course after public outcry,' Liccardo said in a statement." [Local News Matters, 3/6/25]
March 2025: Trump Administration Fired 10 Other Employees At VA Center In Palo Alto. According to Local News Matters, "Ten other employees at VA Palo Alto Health Care System also lost their jobs." [Local News Matters, 3/6/25]