A U.S. federal judge has determined that the Trump administration unlawfully ordered the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to drastically reduce its workforce, violating a law designed to preserve FEMA’s disaster-response capabilities. The ruling by U.S. District Judge Susan Illston of San Francisco came after unions sued the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which oversees FEMA, for its directive to halt the renewal of temporary contracts for thousands of FEMA reservists last year. The 2005 law, enacted after Hurricane Katrina, prohibits DHS from substantially diminishing FEMA’s authorities or functions, which the court found was ignored.

Judge Illston criticized DHS for undermining FEMA’s autonomy by imposing the workforce reductions, noting the lack of reasoned decision-making behind cutting FEMA staff to nearly half its prior numbers. Although the ruling did not immediately impose penalties or remedies, the judge indicated such measures would be addressed in a forthcoming ruling. She also expressed concern over FEMA and DHS officials’ use of the Signal messaging app on personal phones for discussions about staffing cuts and the deletion of those messages, instructing the court to assume the deleted communications were unfavorable to defendants.

The case stems from actions initiated by former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who directed the cuts, rather than FEMA leadership itself. The unions argued that the mass layoffs would significantly weaken FEMA’s critical emergency management role, were unauthorized by Congress, and conflicted with the agency’s mission to respond effectively to disasters. The Trump administration had defended its authority to adjust FEMA staffing levels and had previously floated the idea of abolishing FEMA in favor of making states responsible for emergency preparedness.

This ruling marks a significant judicial check on executive attempts to reshape FEMA’s structure, reinforcing Congressional intent to maintain FEMA’s independence and disaster-response strength. Advocacy groups representing the unions hailed the decision as a victory for protecting FEMA’s operational integrity. Judge Illston’s actions underscore the importance of adherence to laws designed to safeguard federal emergency functions from politically motivated workforce reductions.