WASHINGTON — A union for U.S. Agency for International Development contractors asked a federal judge Tuesday to intervene in any destruction of classified documents after an email ordered staffers to help burn and shred agency records.

Judge Carl Nichols set a Wednesday morning deadline for the plaintiffs and the government to brief him on the issue. A person familiar with the email who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal verified that it was sent to at least some essential personnel.

It comes as the Trump administration has been dismantling USAID, cutting off most federal funding and terminating 83% of humanitarian and development programs abroad, pulling all but a few hundred staffers off the job, and shutting down the agency’s Washington headquarters.

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Lawsuits Mount Over USAID Shutdown

Lawsuits are mounting over the abrupt shutdown of most U.S. foreign assistance and the targeting of the aid agency. In the latest court challenge, Personal Services Contractor Association, representing thousands of contractors now furloughed or fired from USAID, asked the judge to stop any document destruction to preserve evidence.

The email was sent under the name of Erica Carr — the acting executive secretary at USAID — and bears a USAID logo.

“Thank you for your assistance in clearing our classified safes and personnel documents” at USAID headquarters in Washington, it begins.

It directed staffers to report to work starting Tuesday. “Shred as many documents first,” then stuff remaining classified material into designated bags for burning if the demand on the shredder becomes too great, the email instructed.

Staffers were told to write “secret” on the bag with a marker.

The State Department did not immediately respond to questions about the email, including whether officials were following the legally required procedures in any destruction of documents.

Legal Concerns Over Document Handling

The collection, retention and disposal of classified material and federal records are closely regulated by federal law. Improper handling or disposal can be charged as a crime.

Rep. Gregory Meeks, the ranking Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, accused the Trump administration of not complying with federal records law.

“Haphazardly shredding and burning USAID documents and personnel files seems like a great way to get rid of evidence of wrongdoing when you’re illegally dismantling the agency,” Meeks said in a statement.

A group representing USAID workers, the American Foreign Service Association, said in a statement that it feared documents being destroyed could be relevant to the ongoing lawsuits over USAID’s firings and program terminations.

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Classified Documents and Security Concerns

The classified documents at USAID emerged last month when the Trump administration put the agency’s top two security officials on leave after they refused to grant members of Elon Musk’s government-cutting teams access to classified material.

The Associated Press reported that the classified material included intelligence reports. Kate Miller, who serves on an advisory board for DOGE, said at the time that no classified material was accessed “without proper security clearances.”

The wide firings at USAID have left relatively few staffers with access to agency systems.