The lease for a Department of Labor office set up in Richland, Wash., to handle claims from workers made ill from nuclear weapons-related work at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site, could be on the chopping block, Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) said last week.
In addition to the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs, the White House’s Department of Government Efficiency, led by billionaire Elon Musk, has also targeted the lease for the Government Accountability Office in Seattle, often monitors DOE and Department of Defense programs, Murray said in a fact sheet released Friday March 21.
Murray, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, criticized Musk and President Donald Trump in the statement listing affected federal properties in her state. “Two billionaires with no clue what the federal government does are right now pushing to sell dozens of federal properties in Washington state—with absolutely zero consideration for how it will hurt the people who rely on the services provided from these buildings.”
The Hanford Resource Center provides assistance to claimants and potential claimants of benefits under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act, Murray said in the release.
Potential DOGE action on the leases was reported Friday March 21 by the Tri-City Herald newspaper.
On its website, DOGE says it is planning to upload its receipts of apparent government savings in “a digestible and transparent manner consistent with applicable rules and regulations.”
