In a secretarial order, Burgum granted Tyler Hassen, Interior's assistant secretary for policy, management and budget, the authority to take “all necessary actions” to carry out “consolidation, unification and optimization” at the department and its bureaus.
Hassen, who recently appeared in a Fox News interview in which he was identified as a DOGE official at Interior, will be able to issue “policy, directives and guidance” according to the memo.
He was also given the power to make “appropriate funding decisions” and oversee the “transfer of funds, programs, records, and property, as well as taking required personnel actions.”
Interior Department spokesperson J. Elizabeth Peace said in an email that the department was “implementing necessary reforms to ensure fiscal responsibility, operational efficiency and government accountability.”
“We are collaborating closely with the Office of Personnel Management to embrace new opportunities for optimization and innovation,” Peace added.
Read more at TheHill.com.
