# The $9.5 billion bill for not working

> A Trump-era program paid federal workers billions to resign, with costs far exceeding initial projections.
- Title: The $9.5 billion bill for not working · TIME | Shortify
- Summary: A Trump-era program paid federal workers billions to resign, with costs far exceeding initial projections. The federal government spent $9.5 billion on paid…
- Keywords: doge, federal workforce, trump administration, elon musk, deferred resignation, government accountability office, opm, federal spending, layoffs, administrative leave, scott kupor, billion
- Source: TIME — https://time.com/article/2026/09/16/federal-spending-layoffs-deferred-resignation-opm-doge-gao-report
- Author: Miranda Jeyaretnam
- Published: 2026-09-16T00:00:00+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: doge, federal workforce, trump administration, elon musk, deferred resignation, government accountability office, opm, federal spending, layoffs, administrative leave, scott kupor
## A $9.5 billion payroll for nothing
The federal government spent $9.5 billion paying employees to not work in 2025. Paid administrative leave use jumped 435% from 2023 to 2025.
## DOGE's deferred resignation offer
In January 2025, Trump offered 2 million federal workers the option to resign while receiving full pay through September. About 140,000 employees accepted the deal.
## Musk's shrinking savings claims
Elon Musk initially promised $2 trillion in savings, then lowered it to $1 trillion. DOGE ultimately claimed $215 billion, a figure not independently confirmed.
## Uneven cuts across agencies
USAID lost 95% of its workforce, while Education dropped 46% and HUD fell 31%. Homeland Security cut less than 1% of staff.
## Agencies rehired thousands back
By June 2026, agencies had hired 20,557 people for the same types of roles as employees they paid to leave. Some positions couldn't stay empty.
## OPM defends the math
OPM Director Scott Kupor says the $6.7 billion was a one-time cost that will save $20 billion annually. The workforce shrank by 271,000 people overall.

> The savings recur every year, while the administrative leave costs with the DRP were incurred once
## Courts blocked some layoffs
A judge ruled OPM exceeded its authority firing probationary workers. Another blocked a plan to cut FEMA staffing by 50% as unlawful.

> Trump spent billions to push out experienced and badly needed experts across government
## Key takeaway

The federal government spent $9.5 billion on paid administrative leave in 2025, mostly from a DOGE program that paid 140,000 workers to resign.