Internal watchdog offices at the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) have seen significant staff reductions during President Donald Trump’s second term, according to government data and interviews with former employees. The Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR), which investigates attorney misconduct, has lost nearly half its workforce, while the Office of Inspector General (OIG), which probes department-wide waste and fraud, has seen a 17% decline in staff.
These departures coincide with a period in which federal judges have accused DOJ lawyers of misconduct, including making false statements and failing to comply with court orders. The administration has stated that these staffing changes are part of broader efforts to reduce the size of the federal government through buyouts and resignations. Justice Department spokesperson Kiersten Pels stated that OPR remains committed to investigating all allegations of misconduct rigorously.
According to a review of annual reports, OPR opened seven new investigations in the 2025 fiscal year, the lowest number in 20 years. During the same period, the office received 1,666 misconduct complaints, the highest volume since 2005. By comparison, OPR had averaged more than 18 investigations annually over the previous decade. Data obtained via public-records requests shows OPR staffing fell from 29 to 16 employees, while the OIG lost 99 employees, bringing its total staff to 477.
The scale of the staff exodus involves 13 employees from the OPR and 99 from the OIG. For federal workers within these agencies, the reduction in force has been driven by incentives for resignation and warnings of downsizing issued by the White House in early 2025. This workforce contraction, combined with the firing of OPR Director Jeffrey Ragsdale, has occurred alongside a rise in formal complaints. While OPR typically filters many complaints for lacking evidence, the current 20-year high in complaints versus a 20-year low in investigations indicates a significant shift in the ratio of reports to formal actions.
The knock-on effects extend to the relationship between the executive and judicial branches. Federal judges have recently cited DOJ "errors" in cases involving former FBI Director James Comey and criticized a $10 billion settlement between the IRS and the president's businesses. Because the DOJ is pursuing legal authority to restrict state-level ethics probes into its lawyers, these internal watchdogs remain the primary mechanism for accountability. What happens next depends on whether the administration names a permanent director for OPR and how the OIG handles pending audits, such as the review of the Jeffrey Epstein file release. No specific deadlines for new appointments or the conclusion of pending probes were reported.