Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) reportedly cut 30 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) workers in February, disproportionately affecting regulators tasked with assessing self-driving vehicle risks, according to a Financial Times report.
The move could be viewed as a potential conflict of interest and has sparked criticism from Democrats due to Musk serving as the CEO of Tesla.
Newsweek reached out to the White House and the NHTSA for comment by email on Thursday afternoon.
Why It Matters
NHTSA is a federal agency responsible for ensuring motor vehicle safety, setting fuel standards and enforcing regulations related to the nation's transportation system.
U.S. regulators at the agency in January opened an investigation into millions of Tesla vehicles following further reports of crashes involving the car's remote and self-guided features.
This probe followed several other investigations, including one opened in October 2024 about Tesla's "Full Self-Driving" system, a 2022 investigation more than a dozen crashes reportedly cause by Tesla's "autopilot" feature and others.
What To Know
The Financial Times on Thursday cited people familiar with the situation that said of the roughly 30 NHTSA workers let go in February as part of aggressive DOGE cuts, many were part of the "office of vehicle automation safety."
One former NHTSA figure who was not among the layoffs told the Times that this presented a "clear conflict of interest" by "allowing someone with a business interest influence...appointments and policy at the agency regulating them."
This criticism has followed accusations that Musk may have personally benefited from DOGE cuts at other agencies, such as cuts to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that possibly helped his SpaceX company amid red-tape and regulation issues.
NHTSA regulators last month issued a total recall on Tesla Cybertrucks, citing an issue with exterior panels that run along the left and right side of the windshield that could detach while driving and create a dangerous road hazard, The Associated Press reported.
The recall affected 46,096 Cybertrucks, including all 2024 and 2025 model years, manufactured over the past two years.
That followed a wider recall of some 240,000 vehicles in January after the NHTSA opened a probe over rearview cameras having trouble with image displays.
What People Are Saying
Former Labor Secretary Robert Reich, who served in the Clinton administration, in February wrote on X, formerly Twitter: "The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is the latest federal agency to be hit with DOGE layoffs. That's the same agency that has investigated crashes involving Tesla's self-driving cars. This was never about "efficiency."
Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut, a Democrat, in February wrote on X: "Your morning reminder this is all a corrupt grift. Musk is firing 50% of the office that regulates the self driving cars he makes and sells. Those that remain will serve at the pleasure of the guy they are supposed to be regulating. Not a joke."
President Donald Trump during a Cabinet meeting on Thursday told Musk: "And your people are fantastic. In fact, hopefully they'll stay around for the long haul. We'd like to keep as many as we can," adding, "They're great, smart, sharp, right? Finding things that nobody would have thought of. Very computer savvy."
What Happens Next
Trump has insisted that DOGE will continue it's goal of slashing federal spending and has praised the work of Musk and his team.
