As Washington grapples with a multibillion-dollar budget shortfall, some state agencies are starting the largest wave of layoffs since the Great Recession.
The state worker layoffs come as the new state budget kicks in July 1. Gov. Bob Ferguson signed the 2025-27 budget last month. It totals nearly $78 billion for two years, adds $9 billion in new revenues, but also includes many cuts to state services and jobs in an attempt to shore up the estimated $10 billion to $12 billion deficit in the next four years.
Layoffs were predicted, and state agencies had not been filling positions to soften the blow on workers, but they will still have impacts in several parts of state government, with cuts expected to affect approximately 1,000 positions. At the beginning of his first legislative session as governor, Ferguson directed most executive branch agencies to cut 6% of their budget.
The Department of Social and Health Services, the largest agency with over 18,350 staffers, has to cut 731 positions statewide, although about 430 are vacant, said Adolfo Capestany, senior communications director for DSHS. The remaining 300 are filled and there will be layoffs, he said.
Capestany said this is the first time since the Great Recession that the agency has "had layoffs of this magnitude related to budget issues," which he noted was "an unusual volume for sure."
More than one-third of the 300 layoffs are in management positions across all divisions. Capestany estimated that about 60% of the positions are funded by state dollars and the other about 40% through federal funds. Cuts to the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps, or Medicaid benefits could change the situation with some federally funded positions, he added.
The Department of Corrections says it will also see some "extraordinary" effects due to state budget cuts, but that it has seen minimal impacts from cuts to federal dollars. Overall, the agency was able to avoid the 6% across-the-board cuts unlike other agencies as part of Ferguson's emphasis on public safety.
In October, three reentry centers — Ahtanum View in Yakima, Peninsula in Port Orchard and Tri-Cities in Kennewick — and the Mission Creek minimum-security facility for women in Belfair, Mason County, will close, leading to job losses for many. Closures of the facilities were made official when the budget was signed, and staffing at Mission Creek has already begun to dwindle with employees looking for new work.
"In general, it is rare that facilities close by the state's own volition," said Jim Kopriva, media relations manager for DOC. "This session claimed four facilities, which is extraordinary. That speaks to the powerful financial headwinds faced by the state. And even in these conditions, DOC was largely spared the more severe cuts felt by other state agencies."
Kopriva said cuts under then-Gov. Christine Gregoire between 2008 and 2010 were comparable to cuts this year.
Chris Wright, communications director for DOC, added that the facilities were being underutilized due to the Blake decision, which found Washington's previous drug possession law unconstitutional, and other changes in sentencing laws, which leave fewer people in DOC custody qualifying for minimum-security facilities like Mission Creek or a reentry center. People who have committed more serious felonies now make up a majority of DOC populations, he said.
Wright noted that DOC is working with affected employees to offer them positions at other DOC facilities, but said that is not possible for everyone. DOC said the agency was unable to estimate the number of layoffs.
Notably, Washington's overall prison population has declined from more than 16,000 to around 12,000 in the last decade.
About 47 layoffs due to cuts from federal and state dollars also means that two Washington state library facilities — the research library in Tumwater and The Washington Talking Book and Braille Library in Seattle — will have to close "indefinitely."
"The impact of the closures will risk denying communities access to the information, literacy tools, and resources they depend on," said Secretary of State Steve Hobbs. "Libraries are cornerstones of civic life and education in many areas of our state."
In the final budget passed by the Legislature, a request by the Washington State Library for $6.7 million was not included.
The Department of Children, Youth and Families will cut 60 positions, 35 of them left vacant in anticipation of cuts. The other 25 layoffs will include management, administrative, IT and analysts.
Nancy Gutierrez, director of external communications for the agency, said those positions won't affect the ability of the agency to operate.
Due to a combination of state budget reductions and federal funding ending, the Department of Health said over 40 employees have been laid off or are scheduled to be laid off by the end of June. Shelby Anderson, a spokesperson for the department, said further layoffs are expected after July 31, and the agency is assessing how those cuts will affect programs.
The state's final budget included a $39 million cut to the department, including to programs aimed at reproductive health and addressing effects of climate change. Anderson said cuts to reproductive programs means reduced funding for reproductive services, retention and recruitment of providers and security at facilities.
Funding to regional health offices will also be cut, severing connections with local public health departments and tribes who tapped DOH experts in areas including communicable disease control, immunizations, opioid and overdose work and others.
Overall, however, Anderson noted that layoffs in 2024 were worse than this year, with 121 employees impacted. The last time DOH experienced layoffs in that range was between 2009 and 2013, following the Great Recession.
Washington's Employment Security Department will eliminate 100 permanent positions by the end of June, although 80 of those positions were left vacant. Chris Barron, director of communications, said most of those positions, in administration or management, were intentionally left open with all the budget uncertainties to avoid additional layoffs.
Barron noted that the agency is still unsure about the potential effects of federal funding cuts.
Other state agencies, including the Department of Commerce and the Department of Ecology, were still determining potential staffing cuts.
Not all agencies will have to lay off employees.
Mike Faulk, deputy communications director for the attorney general's office, said the agency was "spared the vast majority of proposed funding cuts," and does not have any plans for program cuts, furloughs or layoffs.
Likewise, no layoffs have occurred or are planned at agencies such as the Department of Financial Institutions, the Department of Labor and Industries, the Department of Revenue, the Washington State Gambling Commission or Washington Technology Solutions.
The Washington State Department of Transportation, funded through the transportation budget instead of the general fund, has also not seen any layoffs nor are any planned.
A spokesperson for the Department of Natural Resources said despite cuts to wildfire and forest health funding, wildfire staff this season will also not be affected.
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