EPA Eliminates Office of Research and Development, Will Cut Over 3,700 Staff

On July 18, 2025, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the elimination of its Office of Research and Development (ORD) and the creation of a new Office of Applied Science and Environmental Solutions, part of a broader reorganization of the agency’s research efforts and expertise. The EPA also announced that it would begin the process of reducing the agency’s total workforce by 3,700 to 12,448, a nearly 23% reduction in staffing levels since January 2025.

ORD is the primary research arm of the agency and currently employs 1,540 staff members, according to a review of agency documents by Democrats on the House Science Committee. The documents also reveal that as many as 1,155 EPA chemists, biologists, toxicologists, and other scientists could be laid off.

Critics argue that the changes will significantly impact public health and undermine federal scientific research. Justin Chen, president of the American Federation of Government Employees Council 238, which represents thousands of EPA employees, called ORD “the heart and brain of the EPA,” and said that “[w]ithout it, we don’t have the means to assess impacts upon human health and the environment. Its destruction will devastate public health in our country.” Representative Zoe Lofgren, ranking member of the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee, said that “the obliteration of ORD will have generational impacts on Americans’ health and safety.” The Trump administration cut funding to ORD earlier this year.

Update: On September 22, 2025, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin sent a memo to staff announcing a major reorganization of the agency, including the formation of the Office of Applied Science and Environmental Solutions (OASES) to replace ORD. According to the announcement, OASES will be housed within the Office of the Administrator, which critics argue is intended to intimidate researchers and will lead to greater political interference in their work. “They are putting [OASES] directly under the administrator and subjecting it to political interference, subjecting research at the office to political interference,” said Nicole Cantello, president of the American Federation of Government Employees Local 704, which represents EPA Region 5 employees.