A US federal judge on Tuesday ruled that the decision by President Donald Trump’s administration to effectively shut down Voice of America (VOA) and its parent agency, the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM), violated the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). Writing for the US District Court for the District of Columbia, Senior Judge Royce Lamberth ordered the agency’s operations, staffing, and broadcasting activities to be fully restored.
The court held that USAGM failed to satisfy the APA’s requirement of reasoned decision-making when it ceased broadcasting operations and implemented mass paid leave for many of its employees. The court also found that federal law imposed specific, mandatory broadcasting obligations that the agency was no longer capable of meeting at its reduced staffing levels, amounting to an unlawful withholding of required agency action under APA §706(1). The memorandum opinion concluded that Congress’s repeated appropriations for VOA operations reflected a clear legislative intent that the defendants had no authority to unilaterally override.
The court did find in favor of the government with respect to VOA personal service contractors’ claims for reinstatement. The court held that these were essentially contract disputes and that the Tucker Act therefore stripped the district court of jurisdiction to hear them, instead directing those contractors to seek relief before the Court of Federal Claims.
Tuesday’s order vacated USAGM’s Statutory Minimum Memorandum and the administrative leave placements and broadcasting halts taken to implement it, finding each to be arbitrary, capricious, and contrary to law. The ruling requires the agency to restore staffing and resume broadcasting operations in compliance with its congressional mandate.
VOA was first established in 1942 as a counter-propaganda operation during World War II, and it was later codified by Congress as a global broadcasting service. In March 2025, Trump issued an executive order directing USAGM and six other federal agencies to reduce their functions to the minimum required by law. USAGM, under direction of Senior Advisor Kari Lake, immediately halted nearly all broadcasting operations and placed over 1,000 employees on paid administrative leave. Legal challenges began within days of the effective shutdown. The consolidated cases had previously resulted in a preliminary injunction in April 2025, with Tuesday’s order now evaluating the APA claims on their merits.
