Labor Unions, Nonprofits, Cities, and Counties Seek Injunction to Stop Impending U.S. Department of Agriculture Reorganization

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: [email protected]

A broad coalition of nationwide labor unions, non-profit organizations, and cities and counties from across the country moved for injunctive relief in their challenge to the massive Trump-Vance administration effort to unlawfully reorganize the federal government, reduce the government workforce, and harm the government’s ability to deliver vital services to families across the country. This action is necessary to prevent mass staff departures from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), represented by union plaintiffs American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) and American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), that would leave the department unable to fulfill its essential functions.

The plaintiffs in AFGE v. Trump are challenging the Trump-Vance administration’s unlawful reorganization of the federal government without legislative authority. The coalition fighting against unlawful government reorganization plans includes AFGE and four AFGE locals; AFSCME; Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and SEIU Local 1000; Alliance for Retired Americans; American Geophysical Union; American Public Health Association; Center for Taxpayer Rights; Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks; Common Defense; Main Street Alliance; NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council); Northeast Organic Farming Association Inc.; VoteVets; Western Watersheds Project; City and County of San Francisco, California; County of Santa Clara, California; City of Chicago, Illinois; City of Baltimore, Maryland; Harris County, Texas; and King County, Washington.  

The filing in AFGE v. Trump draws attention to recently-implemented actions to disrupt USDA by forcing office relocations and mass resignations at the department. Reflecting the massive impact of these plans on communities across the country, this filing adds a trio of plaintiffs that will be directly and irreparably harmed by the unlawful USDA reorganization, including the National WIC Association (NWA), a membership organization that represents more than 10,000 Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) professionals nationwide, including staff at state, tribal, and local WIC agencies, as well as WIC clinic staff; Prince George’s County, Maryland, which is home to the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center; and the Alliance of Crop, Soil and Environmental Science Societies (the Alliance), a nonprofit organization that manages and supports three membership associations: the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America, whose approximately 7,500 members includes USDA employees. The coalition is represented in the case by lead co-counsel Democracy Forward and Altshuler Berzon LLP, along with Protect Democracy, Public Rights Project, and Democracy Defenders Fund, and counsel for local governments. 

Earlier this year, USDA began taking action to implement a Reorganization Plan that would restructure and downsize the agency across many different issue areas and sub-agencies, including the U.S. Forest Service, the Food and Nutrition Administration, Agricultural Research Service, Economic Research Service, National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Farm Production and Conservation mission area (which include the Farm Service Agency, Risk Management Agency, Natural Resources Conservation Service), Rural Development mission area, and the Foreign Agricultural Service.  

“The Trump Administration’s unlawful government reorganization is part of their ongoing war on science. It undercuts the essential science undertaken by many of the Agencies to better understand and protect America’s unique natural history and resources. Some of my colleagues provided the court with clear examples of how these moves stifle essential research in forestry and soil science, illustrating the wide and damaging impacts these cuts would have if allowed to move forward,” said Garett Rose, senior attorney at NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council). 

For more on this case, please click here.

To read the filed supplemental complaint, please click here, and to read the memorandum in support of preliminary injunction, please click here. 

For more resources for civil servants facing retaliatory dismissal, please visit civilservicestrong.org. 

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The American Public Health Association champions optimal, equitable health and well-being for all. With our broad-based member community and 150-year perspective, we influence federal policy to improve the public’s health. Learn more at www.apha.org.

Democracy Forward Foundation is a national legal organization that advances democracy and social progress through litigation, policy, public education, and regulatory engagement. For more information, please visit www.democracyforward.org. 

NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) is an international nonprofit environmental organization with more than 3 million members and online activists. Established in 1970, NRDC uses science, policy, law and people power to confront the climate crisis, protect public health, and safeguard nature. NRDC has offices in New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Beijing and Delhi (an office of NRDC India Pvt. Ltd).