Secretary of Defense, Memorandum for Senior Pentagon Leadership, Commanders of the Combatant Commands, Defense Agency and DOD Field Activity Directors, March 28, 2025
To deliver on my commitment to urgently rebuild our military, revive the warrior ethos, and deliver maximum deterrence, we must aggressively refocus every available resource towards our core mission. In addition to our Fiscal Year 2026 President's Budget Relook, we will realign the size of our civilian workforce and strategically restructure it to supercharge our American warfighters consistent with my interim National Defense Strategy guidance.
DoD civilians already support mission-critical requirements, but an honest analysis will reveal opportunities to consolidate duplicative functions, reject excessive bureaucracy, and implement technological solutions that automate routine tasks, particularly at the headquarters level. The net effect will be a reduction in the number of civilian full-time equivalent positions, and increased resources in the areas where we need them most.