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Two more members of Congress have expressed open skepticism and concern for the Trump administration’s proposal to merge the Office of Personnel Management with the General Services Administration.

In a letter to acting OPM Director Margaret Weichert, ranking members of two Senate committees questioned whether the administration was rushing to make decisions about the agency’s workforce and the proposed OPM-GSA merger.

OPM faces a $70 million shortfall when the National Background and Investigations Bureau and its security clearance business transfers to the Pentagon on Oct. 1. The Trump administration last month told Congress that given OPM’s financial situation, the agency risked furloughing employees if lawmakers didn’t agree to move forward with the merger — or secure full-year appropriations for 2020.
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Meanwhile, Reps. Gerry Connolly and Don Beyer (D-Va.), along with D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, have introduced an amendment designed to block the OPM-GSA merger as part of the 2020 defense authorization bill.