White House lays groundwork for mass firings if there's a shutdown

The Office of Management and Budget says in a memo that agencies should prepare reduction-in-force plans to accompany furloughs if a spending bill isn't passed next week.

WASHINGTON — The White House is raising the stakes of a potential government shutdown by drafting a request for federal agencies to prepare “reduction in force” plans in case Congress doesn’t pass a spending bill before Oct. 1.

In a memo from the Office of Management and Budget, obtained by NBC News, the Trump administration indicated it's prepared to go beyond the traditional furloughing of some government employees during shutdowns and fire federal employees.

"With respect to those Federal programs whose funding would lapse and which are otherwise unfunded, such programs are no longer statutorily required to be carried out," the memo says. "RIF notices will be in addition to any furlough notices provided due to the lapse in appropriation."

The memo, first reported by Politico, points to job losses for certain federal employees if the government shuts down next week.

Visitors at the Capitol on Sept. 18.Oliver Contreras / AFP - Getty Images"Programs that did not benefit from an infusion of mandatory appropriations will bear the brunt of a shutdown, and we must continue our planning efforts in the event Democrats decide to shut down the government," the memo says.