State Department to absorb most USAID functions by July 1; officials say life‑saving programs will continue

The Department of State and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) have notified Congress of plans to realign certain USAID functions into the State Department by July 1, 2025, and to discontinue remaining USAID functions that the administration says do not align with its priorities, State Department spokesperson Tami said at a press briefing.

The announcement matters because USAID manages major humanitarian and development programs overseas and staffs missions whose work can be time‑sensitive. "We are committed to ensuring that USAID personnel remain safe and that the agency's ongoing life saving aid programs remain both intact and operational," Tami said, adding that some disruptions are inevitable during a major restructuring.

Officials at the briefing said the reorganization responds to a broad foreign assistance review directed by the secretary and cited an executive order (referred to in the briefing as executive order 14169) as the review framework. Tami said the reorganization is intended to "realign foreign assistance programs to align directly with what is best for The United States and our citizens," and that the department will continue "essential life saving programs and making strategic investments that strengthen our partners and our own country."

Reporters pressed for details on personnel effects after briefings and internal notices that USAID Foreign Service personnel received reduction‑in‑force notices. Tami said she could not provide exact figures and described personnel impacts as "dynamic," but confirmed there will be separation periods effective from July 1 for some employees and that separated employees may be eligible to apply for jobs that remain open after the restructuring. "I can't speak to the number of people" who will be affected, she said.

On concerns about local staff hired at USAID missions overseas, Tami said she could not detail how local‑hire staff will be affected and that each mission's situation is different.

Reporters asked whether the reorganization would affect USAID's Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) capability in the wake of a major earthquake reported in Burma and Thailand. Tami said USAID restructuring "has not affected our ability to employ the DART system as we always have" and that the department and USAID were awaiting formal requests for assistance but stood ready to respond.

The briefing also addressed humanitarian funding in Gaza. Tami said USAID's last tranche of payments to regional partners had been in January and that decisions about how USAID functions move into State — and how specific programs will be funded in the interim — are still being worked through. "I can't speak to the decisions that'll be made once that decision occurs through USAID as it exists and how it moves into State," she said.

Officials did not provide a full funding breakdown or a complete timeline for personnel actions. Tami said the department will provide additional information publicly as it becomes available.

The reorganization announcement follows a White House‑directed review, according to the spokesperson, and the administration says some programs will be discontinued if they do not align with its priorities. Questions about costs to repatriate employees and their families, the precise number of affected Foreign Service officers, and the fate of specific partner contracts were left unanswered at the briefing.