LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — We have been working to get more information on this story after Nevada Senator Catherine Cortez Masto sounded the alarm about layoffs in the General Services Administration (GSA) in Nevada.
A call to the local GSA office in Las Vegas wasn't returned on Tuesday — neither were two messages to the GSA's regional office in San Francisco or the administration's headquarters in Washington D.C.
We know the GSA acts as the federal government's purchasing department and landlord, managing five federal courthouses in the state, including two in downtown Las Vegas.
It may have come as a shock to many when Cortez Masto posted on X that President Donald Trump had fired all GSA employees in Nevada. Her post highlighted the duties of the GSA, including building security.
In an interview Tuesday with Channel 13's Justin Hinton, Cortez Masto said she's demanding answers.
"As soon as possible, right? Any timeline. I mean, right now, I just want answers. And I'm going to keep asking the questions and demanding a response through the tools that I have so that I have those answers. It's important that we know what is going on in the state of Nevada," Cortez Masto told Hinton.
Tuesday afternoon, Channel 13 received the following statement from a GSA spokesperson:
Members of the General Service Administration's (GSA) Public Buildings Service (PBS) were notified on Monday, March 3rd, that they had been identified as part of GSA’s Reduction in Force (RIF) and reorganization plan and were being separated from federal service.
All notifications were conducted in accordance with OPM and GSA policies and guidelines. This action was taken in support of the following Executive Orders: “The Hiring Freeze”, dated January 20, 2025; "Eliminating the Federal Executive Institute", dated February 10, 2025; and the "Implementing the President’s Department of Government Efficiency Workforce Optimization Initiative", dated February 11, 2025. GSA is committed to supporting impacted employees as they transition from federal service.
GSA is executing on our strategy to centralize the management of our services, make data-driven decisions and partner with best-in-class commercial services.
GSA is in contact with customer tenant agencies that may be impacted by this action and will continue to support their critical work for the American taxpayer while we execute a plan to increase space utilization and occupancy.
In this new model, the GSA will not only maintain facility services including repairs, maintenance, janitorial and security through our existing partners, but we will exceed the quality of service to enable our agency customers to fulfill their missions.
The head of the National Federation of Federal Employees estimates about 175,000 federal workers have been laid off or forced into a deferred resignation.
The Office of Personnel Management said there are about 2.3 million federal employees in the workforce.
Channel 13 Senior Political Reporter Steve Sebelius contributed to this report.
Do you have a question about the Nevada Legislature, politics or government? Write to us using the Ask Steve link on our website.
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