A divided federal appeals court has overturned a lower court ruling that had temporarily blocked the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by Elon Musk, from accessing sensitive data from multiple federal agencies.
Newsweek reached out to Musk via email on Monday for comment.
Previous Legal Challenges
A separate but related case involved DOGE’s attempt to access Social Security Administration data. On March 20, Maryland federal judge Ellen Hollander imposed a temporary restraining order to prevent DOGE from accessing sensitive systems within the Social Security Administration (SSA) that contain Americans’ personal information. This case was brought by the Alliance for Retired Americans, the American Federation of Teachers and other representative groups.
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In that ruling, Judge Hollander accused DOGE of launching a “fishing expedition” that could jeopardize privacy. “The DOGE Team is essentially engaged in a fishing expedition at SSA, in search of a fraud epidemic, based on little more than suspicion,” she wrote. “It has launched a search for the proverbial needle in the haystack, without any concrete knowledge that the needle is actually in the haystack.”
DOGE challenged that temporary restraining order to the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals, which ruled on April 1 that it did not have jurisdiction because temporary restraining orders cannot be appealed. An appeal is generally only allowed once such an order is converted to a longer-lasting preliminary injunction.
What To Know
In a 2-1 decision, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals lifted the stay issued by Judge Hollander, clearing the way for DOGE to obtain data from the Treasury Department, Education Department, and the Office of Personnel Management.
The appeals court also narrowly rejected, by an 8-7 vote, a request to hear the case en banc, which would have brought the matter before all active judges on the court.
DOGE’s efficiency efforts have already led to significant workforce reductions across federal agencies. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) plans to eliminate its scientific research office, potentially firing more than 1,000 scientists and employees. The IRS plans to reduce its workforce by about 18,000 employees (20 percent), while the Postal Service announced 10,000 job cuts.
The Department of Education plans to lay off more than 1,300 employees, and the Department of Veterans Affairs is planning a reorganization that includes cutting 80,000 jobs. The Pentagon reportedly plans to cut 50,000 to 60,000 civilian positions.
At least 24,000 probationary workers had been terminated since President Donald Trump took office, according to a lawsuit filed by nearly 20 states alleging these mass firings are illegal. Two federal judges ordered 19 federal agencies to reinstate probationary workers who were fired. Additionally, about 75,000 federal workers accepted offers to quit in return for receiving pay and benefits until September 30.
DOGE has said its efforts have saved the federal government an estimated $140 billion as of April. Musk had initially said his goal was to cut $2 trillion from the federal budget, but backtracked in January, saying there was a “good shot” of trimming half that amount.
According to the Musk Watch DOGE Tracker designed by data analyst Brian Banks, the verifiable savings, as of April 7, were about $11.7 billion.
Is DOGE A Government Agency?
Trump signed an executive order on his first day back in office, officially creating DOGE to modernize “federal technology and software to maximize governmental efficiency and productivity.”
Despite its name, it is not a government agency created by an act of Congress but a task force that targets waste and fraud in the federal government.
What Happens Next
With the stay lifted, DOGE can now proceed with data collection efforts from the three departments. The task force also is planning to create a “mega API”—which allows software systems to talk to one another—to access IIRS data, according to a report from Wired.
Update: 4/7/25, 2:36 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information and remarks.
