特朗普政府政府效率部门（DOGE）大幅裁减联邦机构员工，人事管理办公室（OPM）的FOIA公共记录部门受到严重冲击。[1]超过600名政府信息专家在特朗普第二任期成立以来离职或被解雇，其中OPM内部12名信息专家离职，包括7人被裁员，仅有1人新招聘补充。[1]这些人员变化导致OPM处理自由信息法（FOIA）请求的能力大幅下滑，简单请求的平均处理时间从42天延长至84天。[1]前FOIA专家表示，裁员使办公室效率下降，难以履行法定职责。[1]
OPM的FOIA请求积压情况急剧恶化。[1]财政年度末OPM积压的FOIA请求超过1600份，较前一财年增加七倍。[1]由承包商Opexus运维的OPM门户网站在7月10日至7月23日期间故障，共计13天，进一步加剧了公众获取联邦记录的困难。[1]Opexus获得了超5000万美元的联邦合同，声称处理联邦政府80%的FOIA请求。[1]
The Office of Personnel Management's public records division has descended into dysfunction following sweeping workforce reductions under the Trump administration's efficiency initiatives. More than 600 federal information specialists have departed or been terminated since the start of the second Trump term, with the OPM's FOIA office particularly hard hit [1]. Within OPM itself, twelve information specialists have left the agency—seven through layoffs and only one replacement hired—leaving the bureau struggling to process document requests [1].
The consequences have been immediate and measurable. The number of pending FOIA requests at OPM surged sevenfold by the end of the fiscal year, exceeding 1,600 cases, while processing time for straightforward requests nearly doubled from 42 days to 84 days [1]. Adding to the delays, the OPM's public portal—maintained by contractor Opexus, which holds over $50 million in federal contracts and claims to handle FOIA requests for 80 percent of federal agencies—remained inoperative for thirteen consecutive days in July, from July 10 through July 23 [1]. Former FOIA specialists have characterized the layoffs as rendering the office less efficient and undermining its ability to fulfill statutory obligations [1].