Young volunteers who help with disaster relief and community service projects across the U.S. have been dismissed as part of the Trump administration’s efforts to slash government spending.
AmeriCorps’ National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC) told volunteers on Tuesday that they would be leaving the program early because of “programmatic circumstances beyond your control,” according to an email obtained by The Associated Press.
The program, which celebrated its 30th anniversary last year, enlists more than 2,000 people aged 18 to 26 to serve for nearly a year, according to the program’s website. They are assigned to projects with nonprofits and community organizations or the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP Photo
The program covers volunteers’ basic expenses, including housing, meals and a “limited health benefit” and provides a “modest” living allowance. The program also provides members who complete their service term with an award of more than $7,000 to use on future educational expensive or to pay back certain student loans.
A White House official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly, told the AP that the Trump administration questioned whether the program was a proper use of taxpayer funds.
Newsweek has contacted AmeriCorps for comment via email.
Credit Cards Canceled
Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency said it has canceled almost 470,000 government credit cards.
DOGE said in a post on Musk-owned X, formerly Twitter, on Wednesday that its program to audit unused or unneeded credit cards has expanded to 30 agencies.
“After 7 weeks, ~470k cards have been de-activated,” the post said. “As a reminder, at the start of the audit, there were ~4.6M active cards/accounts, so still more work to do.”
How Many Jobs Has DOGE Cut So Far?
Tens of thousands of job losses have been announced across various federal agencies.
Layoffs are underway at the Department of Health and Human Services, which initially announced that it would eliminate 10,000 jobs as part of a major restructuring plan.
The Environmental Protection Agency plans to eliminate its scientific research office and could fire more than 1,000 scientists and other employees, the AP reported.
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, who has since resigned, told Congress that the United States Postal Service would cut 10,000 workers.
The Department of Education announced plans to lay off more than 1,300 employees, while the Department of Veterans Affairs is planning a reorganization that includes cutting 80,000 jobs, according to an internal memo the AP obtained in March.
The Pentagon reportedly plans to cut its civilian workforce by about 50,000 to 60,000.
At least 24,000 probationary workers have been terminated since President Donald Trump’s second term began on January 20, according to a lawsuit filed by 19 state attorneys general and the District of Columbia alleging that the mass firings are illegal. In March, two federal judges ordered 19 federal agencies to reinstate fired probationary workers.
About 75,000 federal workers have accepted the Trump administration’s offer to resign and continue receiving pay and benefits until September 30.
How Much Spending Has DOGE Cut So Far?
DOGE said its efforts have saved the federal government an estimated $155 billion as of April 14. Musk initially said his goal was to trim $2 trillion from the federal budget. In January, he backtracked, saying there was a “good shot” of cutting half that amount.
DOGE said the receipts provided on its website—showing contract, grant and lease cancellations—represented about 30 percent of total savings, meaning the top-line figure is not yet verifiable.
According to the Musk Watch DOGE Tracker designed by data analyst Brian Banks, the verifiable savings were about $11.7 billion as of April 1, including actual savings from verifiable grants and contracts as well as real estate.
Is DOGE A Government Agency?
On his first day back in office, Trump signed an executive order creating DOGE to modernize “federal technology and software to maximize governmental efficiency and productivity.”
Despite its name, DOGE is not a government agency created by an act of Congress but a task force that targets waste and fraud in the federal government.
