The Use and Abuse of Administrative Leave

Administrative leave has become a central tool in DOGE’s war against the federal workforce. Beyond USAID, the Department of Energy, the Department of Justice, and the Environmental Protection Agency have placed employees on administrative leave. Employees working on diversity and inclusion issues have suffered the same fate. The administration has used administrative leave not only to remove employees involuntarily but also to encourage voluntary separations. The deferred resignation program also offers seven months of administrative leave to employees who choose to resign. By using administrative leave, DOGE has halted the operations of dozens of programs in multiple agencies.

This use of administrative leave likely violates the plain text of the Administrative Leave Act of 2016. The Trump administration is relying on Biden-era regulations that limit the scope of the act to investigations. Nevertheless, those regulations comport with neither the text nor the spirit of the law. A lawsuit challenging the use of leave may result in this rule being overturned.

The current moment demonstrates the importance of guardrails like the Administrative Leave Act to preserving administrative capacity. A broad interpretation of the act allows presidents to dismantle entire agencies by removing employees. By impeding agencies’ implementation of the laws enacted by Congress, the president has shown little respect for his constitutional obligation to faithfully execute the law.

Lambert here: “Guardrails” is one of those words; it presumes the road is going in the right direction, the car is going in the right direction, etc. etc.

[Here follows a history of administrative legislation, rules and regulations, and interpretations.]

The current moment shows the dangers of OPM’s interpretation [of administrative leave]. An unfettered power of administrative leave allows presidents to effectively dismantle entire agencies. Congress cannot have intended for presidents to use administrative leave in a way that would make it impossible for agencies to administer the programs Congress enacts into law.