Cybersecurity Policy Report, CISA Faces New Cuts in Trump’s Proposed FY 2027 Budget, (Apr 3, 2026)
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency would face new cuts in its budget and workforce under a fiscal year 2027 spending plan released by the White House today.
The budget blueprint proposes to cut CISA’s budget by $707 million in FY 2027, leaving the agency with funding of about $2 billion. In FY 2026, the president’s budget proposed $2.38 billion. For most of the past year, however, CISA has been operating under continuing resolutions—rather than annual congressional appropriations—that have provided ongoing funding of about $2.72 billion annually.
The president’s FY 2027 budget also anticipates cutting CISA’s approved workforce from 3,290 to 2,528. The official numbers for both funding and workforce were upended last year by the White House Department of Government Efficiency, which cut both without congressional approval.
CISA’s former acting director, Madhu Gottumukkala, told the House Homeland Security Committee in January that CISA’s workforce had shrunk from 3,389 personnel on Jan. 20, 2025, to 2,389 as of Dec. 31, 2025 (CPR, Jan. 21).
CISA has been shut down since Feb. 13 after Congress failed to adopt an FY 2026 appropriations bill. Its shutdown workforce numbers about 888.
The Trump administration’s proposed FY 2027 cuts aim to refocus CISA “on its core mission—Federal network defense and enhancing the security and resilience of critical infrastructure—while eliminating weaponization and waste,” according to a budget overview.
The administration’s rationale reflects concerns by President Trump and his allies about CISA’s previous work on election security, including flagging mis- and disinformation, and CISA’s declaration that the 2020 presidential election, which President Trump lost to Joe Biden, was secure.
“CISA was more focused on censorship than on protecting the Nation’s critical systems, and put them at risk due to poor management and inefficiency, as well as a focus on self-promotion,” the administration explained. “The Budget eliminates programs focused on so-called misinformation and propaganda as well as external engagement offices such as council management, stakeholder engagement, and international affairs.”
CISA’s actual FY 2027 budget will be determined by Congress through the appropriations process.
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