DOGE Ordered to Provide Details of Cost-Cutting Efforts

A federal judge wants more information on Elon Musk’s government cost-cutting project.

As Reuters reported Thursday (March 13), U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan has ordered the Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to turn over a variety of records and answer queries about their work at slashing government spending.

The ruling came in response to a lawsuit by 14 Democratic state attorneys general against Musk, DOGE and Republican President Donald Trump. The states contend Musk is violating the Constitution by wielding power that only Senate-appointed officials can hold under the Appointments Clause.

According to Reuters, Chutkan said her order focused mainly on which DOGE staffers were making decisions on cost-cutting and how far they could go. The report said that Musk and DOGE have until April 2 to comply with Chutkan’s ruling.

“Defendants argue that the ‘inner workings of government’ are immaterial to an Appointments Clause claim,” the judge wrote. “The court is not convinced, but that is a legal issue appropriate for resolution after fulsome briefing.

“At this stage,” she added, “it is sufficient that plaintiffs’ discovery requests intend to reveal the scope of DOGE’s and Musk’s authority.”

DOGE was established by Trump via executive order on his first day back in office. The order said DOGE’s purpose is to increase governmental efficiency and productivity by modernizing federal technology and software.

The agency has since then cut thousands of government jobs, leading to a series of court battles over the legality of DOGE’s actions. So far, it’s unclear how much money these efforts have saved. DOGE said earlier this month that its work had yielded savings of $105 billion, though a report by ABC News said the total figure is unverifiable.

DOGE won a court battle last week when a judge rejected a request to block the department from the U.S. Treasury payment system.

That request came from a retirees’ group and two labor unions who sought an injunction, alleging that it was necessary to protect Americans’ private data. The judge said there was no evidence the system’s data had been compromised.

“The practical effect of this ruling is limited, though, because another federal judge in New York blocked DOGE from accessing the system, saying that the Treasury Department’s decision to give DOGE access was rushed and created a ‘realistic danger’ that private data could be disclosed,” PYMNTS wrote.