Federal Employee Firing Blitz | NPS Seasonal Employees Unfrozen | Whiskey A Trade War Casualty? | The Capitol of Love
Happy St. Valentine’s Day!
Last night, the White House directed federal agencies to fire most of the 220,000+ federal employees that are in their first year of service, known as probationary employees. How many employees will be let go is unclear but the numbers are approximately 1% of the federal workforce and could impact the ability to connect with service, programs, and funding. The Washington Post has a rundown on the order and the agencies most effected that can be read here.
Demonstrating how chaotic this force reduction process has been the National Park Service (NPS) was given orders to fire 1,000 probationary employees, while the 5,000 season job offers have been fully restored. The U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service will also be firing staff but has not released numbers. The Washington Post has done a deep dive into the details of the firing blitz on NPS and the Department of the Interior that can be read here.
POLITICO reports the Forest Service announced that it will be firing 3,400 employees at every level of the agency. This news came a few hours after the Asheville Citizen Times reported the Forest Service has reopened more than 100 miles of the Appalachian Trail in North Carolina, a key recovery milestone.
I have confirmed that Toby Bloom, the Forest Service’s National Program Manager for Tourism and Interpretation was unaffected and looks forward to collaborating with tourism communities.
The Small Business Administration was targeted in this found of firings but has provided no details on numbers or the positions let go.
Many of these firings won’t be felt at the local level for months but the NPS, Fish & Wildlife, and Forest Service employee reductions will be felt quickly and directly. If you have any information on people or number in your community please share them with me. The NPS Coalition is tracking these numbers and sharing with Capitol Hill to help legislators understand the impact to their communities. The reversal of the NPS season hiring freeze demonstrates that the WH is responding to pressure from Congress and the public on these employee firings, so please let me now how your community is impacted.
The U.S. whiskey industry is caught up in the face-off over tariffs and is facing tariffs as high as 50% by the European Union if the trade issues aren't resolved by March 31. On the upside, I can think of no better way to illustrate the pain of trade wars and bring contentious negotiators to the table then to provide them with Kentucky bourbon. The New York Times as a good rundown of the issues involved.
In honor of Valentine’s Day, the New York Times has a great piece on the city that is the capitol of love: New Bern, NC. Driven by the books of Nicholas Sparks, who is a resident, the romantic destination draws a wide array of visitors. The article can be read here.