Trump Firings Could Deprive Independent Agencies of Quorums, Thwarting Core Functions

For Immediate Release: March 3, 2025
Contact: David Rosen, drosen@citizen.org

WASHINGTON, D.C. – President Donald Trump’s unprecedented and unlawful firings of independent agency commissioners could render these agencies unable to perform core functions, such as issuing new rules, because they lack a quorum, according to a new report released today from the Coalition for Sensible Safeguards (CSS).

CSS analyzed the statutory quorum requirements across many independent agencies to compile a list of agencies where a quorum is currently possible, and those where Trump-era firings and resignations already have deprived agencies of quorum.

So far, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the National Labor Relations Board, and the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board each have been deprived of a quorum because of Trump’s unlawful terminations of commissioners. At least 20 more independent agencies could be at risk of losing their quorums.

“Americans rely upon independent agencies to ensure our safety, protect workers, and keep financial markets fair and sound. Without fully functioning agencies, we’ll lose these essential protections,” said Rachel Weintraub, executive director of CSS and co-author of the report.

Each agency has different rules and practices regarding what activities can be conducted if it lacks a quorum. CSS does not list those activities, but instead analyzed whether each agency currently meets its statutory definition of a quorum. CSS plans to update the data as additional terminations take place that jeopardize core agency functions.