NASA Employees and Advocates Demonstrate Against Significant Budget and Workforce Reductions
Headline: NASA Faces Funding Cuts and Union Rights Removal as Deadline for Government Shutdown Looms
NASA employees and supporters gathered peacefully at the agency's headquarters in Washington, D.C. last week to protest funding and staffing cuts. The recent executive order issued by the Trump administration has stripped NASA workers of their collective bargaining rights, marking the biggest rollback of labor protections NASA employees have ever faced.
The proposed budget cuts could slash NASA's funding by nearly 25%, with the White House's proposed budget for NASA for fiscal 2026 set at $18.8 billion, a 24% decrease from approximately $24.8 billion in 2025. This proposed reduction targets NASA's entire satellite program, as well as its fundamental science research, including astrophysics, planetary science, and heliophysics.
The House and Senate appropriations committee have advanced their versions of the annual spending bill that funds NASA. However, the House voted to keep NASA's budget the same as last year, while the Senate bill would give the agency a slight increase in spending.
The administration's move to cancel collective bargaining agreements is not limited to NASA. It has also affected thousands of workers at other federal agencies. Matthew Biggs, the president of the International Federation of Professional & Technical Engineers, announced that NASA will be added to an ongoing lawsuit challenging the termination of collective bargaining rights later this week.
Colette Delawalla, the executive director of Stand Up for Science, criticized the proposed budget cuts and the executive order at the protest. Mollie Manier, an employee at the National Institutes of Health, urged Congress to insist on a "fighting" continuing resolution that includes protections for scientific federal agencies. Manier emphasized the need for a long-term solution, stating that federal workers are willing to endure short-term pain for the long-term benefit of the nation.
As the deadline to avoid a government shutdown approaches, with lawmakers having until midnight on Sept. 30, the future of NASA and its employees remains uncertain. Casey Dreier, the chief of space policy at The Planetary Society, called the proposal "an extinction-level event." Many speakers at the protest called on Congress to pass a "fighting" continuing resolution that includes protections for scientific federal agencies. Protesters chanted, "When NASA is under attack, what do we do? Rise up, fight back!"
Despite the ongoing protests and legal challenges, the executive director of Stand Up for Science remains unnamed at this time. NASA has already lost nearly 4,000 employees through the deferred resignation program, representing about 20% of its workforce. The future of NASA's satellite program, fundamental science research, and its employees hangs in the balance as the government shutdown deadline approaches.
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