Fermilab Faces Possible Layoffs, But There's Hope for Next Year

The future of the lies behind one of two doors, Director Pier Oddone told staff members Tuesday in the wake of recent budget proposals in Washington, D.C.

Only one of those doors will allow the lab to continue its work harnessing high-energy physics and unlocking the secrets of the universe. The other could mean hundreds of layoffs, furloughs and suspended experiments.

“Congress is proposing a 20 percent cut in all non-defense discretionary spending in the fiscal year 2011 budget,” Oddone explained. “Since we’re already halfway through fiscal year 2011 (which began in Oct. 2010), that would effectively be a 40 percent budget cut for the next six months. It would be impossible to accommodate that cut without major, major disruptions.”

If Congress applies the proposed budget cut to all federal facilities across the board, Fermilab will have to lay off about 400 people, furlough all staff for two months, shut down all its particle accelerators and suspend many of its ongoing experiments, Oddone said. About 2,000 people in all work at Fermilab, according to the lab's website.

“We have to make the consequences of these cuts evident if we are to prevent them," Oddone said. "We have support from our (Congressional) representatives and our stakeholders.”

Fermilab employees left the meeting heartened with news of President Barack Obama’s continued support of scientific research, but they are still concerned about their immediate futures.

“There’s no way to know what’s going to happen—it’s all in the hands of Congress,” commented staff scientist Cheng-Yang Tan. “Until Congress decides, we’re all hanging by our toenails.”

A Critical Crossroads

Congress must approve the FY 2011 budget or a continuation of FY 2010 funding levels by March 4 or risk shutting down the entire federal government. Oddone said Fermilab has enough reserve funds to keep operating for six to eight weeks if the government shuts down.

If Fermilab can avoid major budget cuts in the next month, the lab could see a more stable future in fiscal year 2012. While President Obama’s proposed 2012 budget imposes a spending freeze on domestic programs in general, it includes an $8 billion increase in the Department of Energy’s budget to fund research in clean energy technologies. While Fermilab doesn’t conduct clean energy research, the DOE budget hike would allow Fermilab to keep almost all of its current budget for next year, Oddone said.

“We project that we would only have a 2 percent budget cut, from $397 million to $393 million," Oddone said. "We also would be allowed to keep the savings from , which we could plow into new projects. We would still have a good budget that would allow progress in all our projects."

The lab will save about $30 million the , and those savings are expected to rise in the future as other costs associated with the Tevatron fall, such as data analysis and equipment dis-assembly, he added.