Senate ranking member warns mass DOE layoffs, access lapses threaten research security at national labs
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Summary
The ranking member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee said recent layoffs of 1,800 Department of Energy employees and reports of broad access by a group called DOGE pose counterintelligence risks and urged briefings from DOE before pursuing new legislation.
The ranking member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee told a committee hearing that last week’s layoffs of 1,800 Department of Energy employees and reports of unauthorized access to federal systems pose a risk to U.S. research security and national security.
The ranking member said the layoffs included employees with "top security clearances" who were dismissed "without following legal protocol to end those clearances," and warned that the loss of institutional expertise could have lasting impacts. "They aren't losing their best experts. We are. This is a national security threat that will have lasting impacts on our country for decades to come," the ranking member said.
The remarks came during an open hearing where the senator said some witness testimony could not be discussed publicly for security reasons and urged the committee to obtain briefings from the Department of Energy and its Office of Intelligence and Counterintelligence on how newly passed legislation is being implemented before using the hearing as impetus for further bills. "I think it's important that we be briefed by DOE and its Office of Intelligence and Counterintelligence about how it is implementing recently passed legislation before using this hearing or any hearing as an impetus for future legislation," the ranking member said.
The senator cited bipartisan research-security provisions in the CHIPS and Science Act and in the fiscal year 2025 intelligence authorization act as recent authorities that strengthen DOE's capabilities and said Congress should support DOE's efforts to safeguard research. The ranking member also emphasized the need to balance that security with international scientific collaboration and quoted statistics about immigrant and international-student contributions to U.S. science and technology as part of that context.
The ranking member raised a separate concern about what the transcript called the Department of Government Efficiency ("DOGE"), saying recent reports showed staff associated with that group gained access to multiple federal information systems, including payment systems at the Treasury Department and personnel data at the Social Security Administration. The senator said DOE Office of Intelligence head Jay Tilden had reminded staff that DOGE employees could not enter SCIFs without clearance and said those access events were "concerning." "All of this is concerning," the ranking member said.
The senator said they had "sent a letter to the president urging the administration to halt these mass firings" and, with colleagues on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, had sent a separate letter to the White House demanding answers about DOGE operations and their access to sensitive systems. The ranking member urged colleagues to join in pushing for answers and concluded by yielding back.
No formal committee votes or motions on these issues were recorded in the public portion of the hearing; the ranking member requested classified or DOE-led briefings and called for follow-up inquiries by Congress.
