Case involving RIF not fully resolved, according to judge

In a significant development, U.S. District Judge Susan Illston has announced her intention to litigate the legality of individual agency workforce reduction plans (RIFs), despite the Supreme Court's recent ruling that only applies to the overall finding of President Trump's capacity to order staffing cuts.

Judge Illston's decision comes as several agencies prepare for imminent layoffs, with employees at the State Department and the Interior Department bracing for notices as soon as this week. The State Department, led by Secretary Marco Rubio, has confirmed that it is moving forward with RIFs, having designed its plans over several months and already notifying Congress.

The administration's argument for withholding the individual RIF plans is based on predecisional considerations and executive privilege. However, Judge Illston is "not inclined" to allow for significant redactions and suggests that final decisions on the RIFs must have been made if her injunction had paused them from taking effect.

Judge Illston's order for the administration to reply to the request by Monday follows a joint request from federal employee unions, local governments, and non-profit organisations, who have urged the administration to submit the individual layoff plans to the court for a decision on their legality.

Currently, there are 40 RIF actions underway at 17 agencies that were paused by Judge Illston's injunction. The Supreme Court's recent ruling has struck down this injunction, but Judge Illston remains committed to examining the individual agency layoff plans to determine if they comply with federal statute.

This story has been updated with additional comment from Judge Susan Illston, who suggests she agrees that the individual layoff plans should be submitted for examination to ensure compliance with federal law. The administration's response is eagerly awaited as the impact of these RIFs on federal employees and the agencies themselves continues to unfold.