Horizon Cutting-room Links: Friday, 7 February 2025

"White House Preparing Order to Cut Thousands of Federal Health Workers," Wall Street Journal

"The White House is working on an executive order to fire thousands of U.S. Department of Health and Human Services workers, according to people familiar with the matter. Under the order, the Food and Drug Administration, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other health agencies would have to cut a certain percentage of employees. The order could come as soon as next week, people familiar with the matter said, after workers have an opportunity to take a buyout."

"Donald Trump's so-called buyout offer for federal workers paused by judge," Washington Business Journal

"A group of unions representing federal employees earlier this week sued the Office of Personnel Management over the legality of the Trump administration’s program, which is part of a larger effort to reduce the size of the federal government. The pause from Judge George O’Toole Jr. comes just before the program’s deadline, set for 11:59 p.m. Thursday. O’Toole said federal agencies must notify employees who received the offer about the injunction."

"About 15% of the country’s 2.19 million full-time civilian federal employees work in Greater Washington. Federal civilian employment in D.C. alone is 162,144 as of December."

"Flights into Reagan airport being reduced indefinitely due to crash," Washington Post

"The Federal Aviation Administration is reducing flights into Reagan National Airport from 28 to 26 arrivals an hour, according to two individuals with knowledge of the decision who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media. The move comes a week after a regional passenger jet preparing to land at the airport collided with an Army helicopter, killing 67 people."

"Substantial layoffs 'likely' coming to federal workforce," Business Journal

"The Washington Post cited an email from Erv Koehler, assistant commissioner of general supplies and services at the General Services Administration, stating the likelihood of layoffs. Billionaire Elon Musk, who has been tasked by Trump to lead a new Department of Government Efficiency, and his sidekicks have recently turned their attention to the GSA, which oversees the federal government’s real estate and manages some technology procurement."

"GSA to downsize its own operations amid major restructuring," Business Journal

"The plans ... in the memo are 'not fully formed,' [but] would see GSA consolidate and reduce its own space, downsize support staff and PBS resources, as well as do away with the agency’s long-standing regional structure."

"The cuts, according to Peters, will be achieved by transitioning from an 'agency-centric model of space utilization' in favor of a '‘whole government approach that assesses requirements and availability across agencies' as the federal government’s landlord continues to accelerate plans to cut the government's non-Department of Defense footprint of leased and owned properties in half. The GSA currently oversees 149.39 million square feet of leased property and 363 million square feet of owned space."

"Honeywell, one of the few remaining US industrial conglomerates, will split into three companies," Associated Press

"The company said Thursday that it will separate from its automation and aerospace technologies businesses. ... Honeywell had said in December that it was considering spinning off its aerospace division. The public announcement arrived about one month after Elliott Investment Management revealed a stake of more than $5 billion in the aerospace, automation and materials company."