Musk-led DOGE asked to release records on ops run in 'unusual secrecy'

A federal judge in Washington has asked the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to make records related to its operations public. According to a Reuters report, the department, created by US President Donald Trump and headed by billionaire Elon Musk has been running in ‘unusual secrecy’.

 

The ruling comes in support of the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), a watchdog group that challenged the secrecy surrounding DOGE. The judge pointed out that “DOGE is likely an agency subject to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA),” a law designed to ensure public access to federal records.

 

The Trump administration has maintained that DOGE was exempt from FOIA due to its affiliation with the Executive Office of the President. However, CREW argued that both the Congress and the public needed access to these records, especially as lawmakers debated government funding legislation that must pass by Friday to prevent a partial shutdown.

 

However, District Judge Christopher Cooper, in his remarks at the hearing said that Musk-led DOGE has been exercising “substantial independent authority”, which is “far greater than the other components of that office that are usually exempted from FOIA’s requirements”.

 

The decision by the US district judge is one of a kind and has marked a sign of early victory for the advocates, who have been trying to force DOGE to become more transparent in its role in the mass firings of the workforce, ever since Trump took office.

 

What happened at the hearing?

CREW filed a lawsuit on February 20. It was filed after several requests under FOIA were filed seeking information on DOGE’s operations, which included ‘communications such as internal government emails and memos’.

 

CREW, in its application, sought a release of the order by the government agency Monday, on the pretext that the information from DOGE will be needed both by the Congress and the public ‘during a debate over government funding legislation that is expected to pass by Friday to avoid a partial government shutdown’.

 

Even though the district judge did not set Friday aside as the deadline for the agency to bring records, he did ask them to show the records on an ‘expedited basis’, citing the government funding legislation debate. During the hearing, the judge highlighted the importance of transparency, stating, “Congress and the voters deserve timely information about this agency, especially given its unprecedented authority in reshaping the government.”

 

In his remarks, the district judge also stated that the Musk-led govt agency appears to have the power to not just evaluate the federal programmes but to also reshape or even remove them.

 

Concerns about DOGE’s lack of transparency have been growing, with reports suggesting that the department has been operating behind closed doors—using an external server, communicating through the encrypted app Signal, and having employees who refuse to identify themselves to career officials.

 

Another setback for DOGE

US District Judge’s order seeking transparency from Musk-led DOGE comes at a time when the agency has been under fire for its role in the mass firings of the federal workforce. On March 7 (IST), President Donald Trump convened a meeting with his cabinet and informed them that Musk is not in charge of their departments, thereby limiting his authority on firing federal workers. Reports have also suggested that Musk accepted that his department ‘made some missteps’.

 

[With inputs from Reuters]