Some employees of theFederal Emergency Management Agencywho signed a public letter of dissent earlier this week were put on administrative leave Tuesday evening, according to documents reviewed by The Associated Press.
More than 180 current and former FEMA employees signed the letter sent to the FEMA Review Council and Congress on Monday critiquing recent cuts to agency staff and programs, and warning that FEMA’s capacity to respond to a major disaster was dangerously diminished.
Thirty-five signed their names while 141 signed anonymously for fear of retribution.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency headquarters is photographed in Washington, May 5, 2025.AP
The Associated Press has confirmed that at least two of the signatories received notices Tuesday evening informing them they would be placed on leave indefinitely, with pay and that they must still check in every morning confirming their availability. It was unclear what the status was for other signatories.
The notice said the decision “is not a disciplinary action and is not intended to be punitive.”
FEMA did not respond immediately to questions about how many staff received the notice and whether it was related to the opposition letter.
The Washington Post first reported that some FEMA employees were being put on leave.
The dissent letter contained six “statements of opposition” to current policies at FEMA, including an expenditure approval policy by which Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem must approve contracts exceeding $100,000, which the signatories said reduces FEMA’s ability to perform its mission.
Part of the letter criticizing the Trump administration’s cuts to FEMA.
It also critiqued the DHS decision to reassign some FEMA employees to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the failure to appoint a qualified FEMA administrator as stipulated by law, and cuts to mitigation programs, preparedness training and FEMA workforce
In an email Monday, FEMA spokesperson Daniel Llargues said that the Trump administration “has made accountability and reform a priority so that taxpayer dollars actually reach the people and communities they are meant to help.”
“It is not surprising that some of the same bureaucrats who presided over decades of inefficiency are now objecting to reform,” Llargues said. “Change is always hard.”
Employees at other agencies including the National Institutes of Health and Environmental Protection Agency have issued similar statements. About 140 EPA staff members were placed on administrative leave for signing an opposition letter.
President Trump’s takeover of Washington, DC, has put hundreds of federal agents and National Guard troops on the streets of the capital to clean up crime — and a lot of residents and business owners said they’re noticing that things feel safer already.
“All my employees, including me, we feel much more safe, and even our customers feel really happy when they walk into our store,” Indu Bhatia, who runs a liquor store half a mile from the White House, told The Post.
Bhatia said her store was robbed so many times they had to sink piles of cash into renovations to increase security.
Many DC locals told The Post they mostly feel safer in light of the increased police and National Guard presence after President Trump ordered a federal takeover of police forces in the District.REUTERS
“All we can do as a small business owner is protect yourself,” she said.
It’s not just about the National Guard and federal agents on the streets, she said — Trump also took over the Metropolitan Police Department, for the better.
“I think the local cops have been doing the job, surely, better,” Bhatia added.
Washington has long been one of America’s most violent major cities — with a murder rate that outstrips Chicago and is nearly seven times higher than New York City.
Violence has been trending down so far this year, but certain categories of crime that affect everyday Washingtonians have skyrocketed since the pre-pandemic era.
Carjackings surged 241% between 2019 and 2024 and vehicle thefts were up 143%.
The murder rate — though down from pandemic highs — is still 12% higher than it was in 2019.
Supporters of Trump’s move say they’re hoping it can help clean up the city.
One National Guard troop said fist-bumps and selfie requests have been common occurrences since they were deployed to city streets.National Guard Bureau
Indu Bhatia, who runs a liquor store half a mile from the White House, told The Post that her “employees, including me, we feel much more safe.”New York Post
Mike, a 22-year-old Johns Hopkins University student hanging out in the nearby Federal Triangle neighborhood, said the federal takeover of the DC police force “shows a renewed interest by the Trump administration to move around resources and maybe tackle the problem in a different way.”
He said he’s talked to a few of the National Guard troops stationed around the city, and that they’re “pretty nice guys.”
One National Guardsman stationed near the Navy Memorial, after getting a fist bump from a supportive local, said they’ve seen a ton of support from locals.
“We’ve had a lot of people saying ‘I’m glad you’re here doing what you’re doing — a lot of fist-bumps and selfies,” he said.
Mahesh, 26, a government employee who commutes to DC from Maryland, said he’s noticed speedier response times from cops.
“Recently I went to the White House and saw someone had left a bag outside and right away a cop went out there and was asking people whose bag it was. [The police] are very alert and I feel like it’s very secure,” he said.
“I think Trump is doing right taking care of the city,” he added.
One DC courts employee said he’s noticed an uptick in quality of life charges flowing into the courthouse.
“I’ve always kept my head on a swivel. For some people it may be a change, but as far as my job the only observation is we’re getting more and more crimes coming into the courthouse,” he said.
“There’s a strong possibility the crackdown has led to more of those crimes ending up in court.”
The nation’s capital snapped a nearly unprecedented 12-day streak without a murder Tuesday, but crime stats have been down across the board since Trump intervened, according to the DC Police Union.
The nation’s capital had gone 12 days without a murder amidst the deployment of federal troops in the area.REUTERS
In an X post Monday, the union said in the last 14 days total crime is down 11% citywide, with sharp reductions across the board including robberies (-42%), assaults with a deadly weapon (-13%), carjacking (-85%), car theft (-24%), violent crime (-25%) and property crime (-10%).
One DC Metro worker said he had mixed feelings about the troop deployment, but he understands it on some level as a deterrent.
“It does get rid of a lot of the foolishness inside malls, Metro stations, places of business, just seeing them,” said Alex, 49.
“You have a dude that might come in here and act the fool but instead of doing that he sees [National Guard troops] and says ‘I’m not gonna do nothing’ — it does make some people think twice.”
Not everyone was happy with the increased police and troop presence, however.
National Guard members walk on the National Mall on August 26, 2025, in Washington, DC.Getty Images
“Having the Guard here is idiotic,” Christian Meyers, a DC native who’s lived in the area for around 50 years and works for a nonprofit, told The Post.
“I just think it’s going to be another Kent State. It’s going to happen eventually, if they don’t get out of here. They’re going to pull a gun on somebody and shoot somebody that’s underage, a kid.”
Courtney, who works in government affairs, believes the troop deployment boils down to nothing more than a “publicity stunt” for the Trump administration.
“I don’t think it’s a response to the crime in the city. I live in Southeast Washington, and if you were really worried about crime you’d focus on the neighborhoods that have crime. I feel like the security presence is largely in areas where people can do photo ops,” she said.
“Living in Navy Yard we’ve had a lot of roving teenagers on scooters. Having Capitol Police or DC Police in bikes I think makes a lot more sense in our neighborhood to deal with crime than having National Guard or DEA agents who aren’t trained for that.”
