WASHINGTON – U.S. Representative Brittany Pettersen (CO-07) and Senators Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper led Representatives Diana DeGette (CO-01), Joe Neguse (CO-02), and Jason Crow (CO-06) in a letter to the Office of Personnel Management, demanding information on the recent firings, layoffs, and resignations of federal employees in Colorado.
The City of Lakewood is home to the Denver Federal Center – the largest concentration of federal agencies outside of Washington, D.C. – where more than 6,000 federal employees work to provide groundbreaking research, manage public lands, and deliver critical services that Coloradans depend on every day. The letter comes amid widespread chaos and uncertainty surrounding the scale of the layoffs, the agencies affected, and the devastating impact on essential programs that millions of Coloradans rely on daily.
“The Federal Center employs thousands of hardworking civil servants who go to work every day to manage our public lands, conduct groundbreaking research, and provide critical services that Coloradans depend on,” said Pettersen. “But since taking office, President Trump and Elon Musk have recklessly fired thousands of federal employees, jeopardizing not just these vital services, but also Colorado’s economy. I will keep fighting to hold Trump accountable and push back against any effort that undermines the livelihoods of hardworking public servants.”
In the letter, Members share: “Our state is home to 57,000 federal employees who are critical to managing and protecting Colorado’s public lands, ensuring veterans receive their benefits, helping entrepreneurs start businesses, delivering our mail, forecasting weather, conducting research, and more. We are deeply concerned about the Trump Administration and Elon Musk’s efforts to indiscriminately cut the workforce in our state.
The Members continued, “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.”
Specifically, the lawmakers are requesting information on:
- Federal Employee Firings in Colorado: Number of probationary and non-probationary federal employees fired since January 20, 2025, with breakdowns by agency, location, job level, veteran/disability status, and service length.
- Deferred Resignations: Number of federal employees in Colorado who accepted DOGE’s “deferred resignation” offer, with detailed lists and copies of signed contracts.
- Impact on Federal Lands: Effects of federal workforce downsizing on managing Colorado’s federal lands.
- Department of Defense (DOD) Civilian Firings: How DOD civilian employee firings or resignations are affecting military operations at key Colorado bases, with detailed personnel data and signed contracts.
- Workforce Reductions & Public Services: How OPM is ensuring federal workforce cuts don’t disrupt essential programs like Social Security.
- Data Collection & Security: What worker/employer data DOGE is collecting and how it's being secured, including any firings linked to Elon Musk or DOGE members.
Full text of the letter can be found HERE.
