In a lawsuit filed on Monday, multiple taxpayer and union groups alleged Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) violated multiple laws in its quest to unearth and eliminate wasteful government spending.
The groups claim DOGE launched a “sweeping campaign to access highly-sensitive information systems” and violated laws that limit executive power, protect civil servants, and guard citizens’ data held by the government.
The agency, which was created by an executive order earlier this year, remains a temporary organization within the White House and is tasked with optimizing the federal government, streamlining operations, and slashing spending in just 18 months.
U.S. President Donald Trump is joined by Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, and his son, X Musk, during an executive order signing in the Oval Office at the White House on February 11, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
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Noting recent DOGE action at the Treasury, Labor, Education and Health departments, as well as at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Office of Personnel Management and Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the suit alleges DOGE’s access to sensitive information systems “lacks statutory authority.”
Specifically, it claims DOGE violated the Tax Reform Act, Privacy Act and Administrative Procedures Act.
“The results have already been catastrophic,” according to the suit.
About 100 DOGE protesters gathered, fearing DOGE would cut the workforce at the Bureau of Fiscal Service. (Fox News Digital)
Without the court’s intervention, the groups said they were concerned about DOGE having access to sensitive information including social security numbers, individuals’ finances, and bank account information.
The lawsuit also asserted DOGE will have access to confidential business information, tax records and IRS investigations, which “could include investigations or reports pertaining to Mr. [Elon] Musk’s businesses or those of his competitors.”
“No other business owner on the planet has acces to this kind of information on his competitors, and for good reason,” lawyers wrote in the suit.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Co-Chair of the newly announced Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), arrives on Capitol Hill on December 05, 2024 in Washington, DC. Musk and his Co-Chair, businessman Vivek Ramaswamy are meeting with lawmakers today about DOGE, a planned presidential advisory commission with the goal of cutting government spending and increasing efficiency in the federal workforce. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
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The groups — the Center for Taxpaper Rights, Main Street Alliance, National Federation of Federal Employees, and Communications Workers of America — are seeking a temporary restraining order to maintain the status quo until the court has an opportunity to review DOGE and Musk’s actions.
Following the review, plaintiffs asked the court to declare DOGE’s access unlawful, halt its use of IRS systems, order that information obtained illegally be deleted, and establish new security protections.
The lawsuit was filed prior to a federal judge’s ruling on Tuesday to not block DOGE from accessing government data or firing federal employees.
Demonstrators rally in support of federal workers outside of the Department of Health and Human Services, Friday, Feb. 14, in Washington. (AP/Mark Schiefelbein)
U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan rejected a request for a temporary restraining order, pointing to the absence of evidence showing the agency’s access caused “irreparable harm.”
However, Chutkan did question what “appears to be the unchecked authority of an unelected individual,” referencing Musk.
She also expressed concerns about DOGE’s accountability to Congress.
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Protesters demonstrate in support of federal workers outside of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on Feb. 14, 2025 in Washington, DC. Organizers held the protest to speak on the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) cuts. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Last week, more than a dozen Democratic state attorneys general sued to temporarily restrict DOGE’s access to federal data about government employees, citing concerns about Musk’s access and power.
“There is no greater threat to democracy than the accumulation of state power in the hands of a single, unelected individual,” according to the lawsuit, filed by New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez.
Attorneys general from Arizona, California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington also signed onto the suit.
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Fox News Digital’s Breanne Deppisch contributed to this report.
