The Trump administration has coordinated with Elon Musk’s so-called Ministry of Administration Efficiency, and he has been trapped in a small federal agency that funded libraries and museums across the country. In communities across the U.S., layoffs threaten student field trips, seniors’ classes, and access to popular digital services, such as the e-book app Libby.
On Monday, according to a worker, the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) notified 77 employees — all of the institution’s employees who were immediately given paid executive leave, seeking anonymity for fear of retaliation by Trump officials. Several other sources confirmed the move, which came less than two weeks before President Donald Trump appointed Deputy Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling as the IML’s acting director.
Sonderling and a group of Doge employees met with IMLS leaders late last month, and the union representing 40 IMLS employees represents representatives of U.S. government employee Local 3403. Afterwards, Sonderling sent an email to staff, “emphasizing the importance of libraries and museums in fostering the next generation of views on American exceptionalism and patriotism,” a union representative said in a statement to Wired.
Employees said IMLS employees working at the agency on Monday were asked to deliver computers and lost access to government email addresses a day before being ordered to go home. It is not clear when or if employees will return to work. “On many levels, it’s heartbreaking,” the staff added.
The White House and the Institute of Museums and Library Services did not immediately respond to Wired’s request for comment.
In the United States, the annual budget of IML is less than $1 per person per person. Overall, the agency granted more than $265 million in funding to the library and museum systems last year. IMLS employees said that over time, most of the money was paid as reimbursement, but now no one can cut checks for the funds already allocated.
“The status of previously granted grants is unclear. No employees are to manage these programs and most grants may be terminated,” said U.S. government employee Local 3403 Union in a statement.
About 65% of the funds have been allocated to different states, each of which has funding plans to receive at least about $1.2 million. Recipients can use the money for statewide initiatives or pass it on to local museums and library agencies for fees like employee training and backend software. California and Texas have the highest allocation funds, at about $12.5 million and $15.7 million, according to IMLS data. Individual libraries and museums also receive grants for specific projects directly from IML.
An Idaho art museum is expected to invest $10,350 to support student field trips, according to the IMLS Grant database. The North Carolina Museum allocated $23,500 for knitting and fiber art workshops for seniors. An Indigenous community in California is expected to invest $10,000 in purchasing books and electronic resources.
