The record
Written from the 1 report below. Nothing here is unsourced.
- A new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report found that US federal spending on administrative leave surged 435% in 2025, costing an estimated $9.5 billion, roughly six times the 2023 level.
- Much of the rise was driven by the Trump administration's deferred resignation programme, run through the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), under which over 144,000 federal employees agreed to resign while receiving several months of paid leave, accounting for around $6.7 billion of the spending.
- The Trump administration, led by the Office of Personnel Management, pushed to shrink the federal workforce by 270,000 employees and says the cuts will save about $40 billion annually.
- The GAO cautioned that data inconsistencies may distort its estimate and could hamper assessments of whether promised long-term savings are actually achieved.
What to watch next
- Whether OPM can produce reliable data to verify the claimed $40 billion in annual savings from the workforce cuts.
- Any further GAO follow-up or congressional scrutiny of the deferred resignation programme's costs.
- Additional rounds of the deferred resignation offer or further federal workforce restructuring measures.
Who said what2
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Scott Kupor
OPM Director
2 quotes · 1 outlet
“That 400% return on investment is a massive benefit to the taxpayer”
In the article
…does not distinguish between the one-time $9.5 billion cost of reducing the federal workforce by 270,000 employees and the estimated $40 billion in annual savings that the cuts are expected to generate for taxpayers. “ That 400% return on investment is a massive benefit to the taxpayer ,” OPM Director Scott Kupor said, according to CNN. CNN also sought comment from the White House. According to OPM data, nearly 140,000 federal employees took part in the deferred resignation programme, which was…
“We designed the DRP as a practical, humane, and voluntary option to accelerate workforce transitions in a system that desperately needed movement. Employees were given the option to retire early and receive eight months of paid leave; in return, the government will save $20+ billion in costs, annually”
In the article
…stop the programme but were unsuccessful. OPM backed the deferred resignation programme in August 2025 following a report by Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal that accused the initiative of wasting taxpayer money. “ We designed the DRP as a practical, humane, and voluntary option to accelerate workforce transitions in a system that desperately needed movement. Employees were given the option to retire early and receive eight months of paid leave; in return, the government will save $20+ billion in costs, annually ," Kupor said in a statement at the time. Garvit Bhirani is a journalist based in Gurugram. He is a Deputy Chief Content Producer at LiveMint, where he covers national and international news stories, focusing on…
Coverage1
All filed from India
Named United States · Office of Personnel Management · Department of Government Efficiency · Donald Trump · Elon Musk · Government Accountability Office · Richard Blumenthal · Scott Kupor
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