U.S. Rep. Brittany Pettersen speaks at a press conference about federal funding coming to Colorado for abandoned mine land reclamation efforts on Tuesday, Oct. 31, 2023 in Lakewood. (Lindsey Toomer/Colorado Newsline)
Colorado Democrats in Congress wrote to the U.S. Office of Personnel Management asking for more information on how the firing, layoffs and resignations of federal government workers affect the state.
U.S. Rep. Brittany Pettersen, a Lakewood Democrat whose district includes the Denver Federal Center, the largest concentration of federal agencies outside of Washington, D.C., led the letter alongside U.S. Sens. Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper. More than 6,000 people work at the Denver Federal Center, and more than 57,000 federal employees live and work across Colorado.
“We are deeply concerned about the Trump Administration and Elon Musk’s efforts to indiscriminately cut the workforce in our state,” the letter says. “The consequences of mass firings of our federal employees will undermine the mission and services provided by each agency serving our state, harm the economy, and threaten our Colorado way of life.”
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Since President Donald Trump took office on Jan. 20, the administration has fired thousands of federal employees in an attempt to shrink the federal government under billionaire White House adviser Elon Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE. On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Education became subject to the latest round of cuts through a federal “reduction in force” process.
The letter highlighted Colorado’s “year-round wildfire season,” and said losing wildland firefighters with the U.S. Forest Service “threaten life-saving wildfire mitigation efforts, undercut our wildfire prevention and recovery efforts, and impede our robust outdoor recreation industry.”
U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette, a Denver Democrat, Assistant House Minority Leader Joe Neguse, a Lafayette Democrat, and U.S. Rep. Jason Crow, a Centennial Democrat, also signed the letter.
The letter asks OPM how many probationary and non-probationary employees in Colorado have been fired in which agency, county, and congressional district, as well as their level of employment, veterans status, disability status, and average length of service. It also asks how downsizing will affect federal land management and military readiness at Colorado locations including Peterson Air Force Base, Buckley Space Force Base, Schriever Space Force Base, the United States Air Force Academy, and others.
The lawmakers also asked if essential services like Social Security will be disrupted by downsizing, and what employee-related data DOGE is collecting.
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