UPDATE 1-Trump team aims to ease legal hurdles to closing government office

Agencies would be able to lay off staff without considering performance or length of service when closing entire government programs or offices under the proposal. The Trump administration, since January, has effectively shuttered government programs by dismissing staff, including teams that enforce civil rights laws.

The Trump administration is considering options to enhance its ability to close government offices and end programs it no longer wants, according to a proposal seen by Reuters. The administration is developing a rule to more easily manage the legal consequences of layoffs, according to the documents. Agencies would be able to lay off staff without considering performance or length of service when closing entire government programs or offices under the proposal.

The Trump administration, since January, has effectively shuttered government programs by dismissing staff, including teams that enforce civil rights laws. Federal workers have accused the administration of ignoring the required rankings when dismissing the employees. This proposal would help Trump administration officials address that issue going forward and align the government’s layoff rules more closely with the private sector. “It’s codifying what they’ve been trying to do” at U.S. government agencies, said Keir Bickerstaffe, a federal employment attorney. “They’d be able to handpick and eliminate offices and programs they disagree with.”

The Trump administration believes it should not have to rank employees based on performance or length of service when closing entire offices, an administration official said, adding that it does not make sense to do so.