Independent agencies are key to maintaining stability during transitions between administrations. Their employees possess critical institutional knowledge that benefits the American people. Additionally, the independence of federal agencies provides an important check on presidential power.
Since the second Trump Administration began, an estimated 199,000 civil servants have left the federal workforce. This has had a major impact on independent agencies, or government agencies that are within the executive branch, but whose leadership cannot be removed at will by the president, unlike cabinet secretaries.
