DOGE Transparency Foia Lawsuits
DOGE Transparency Foia Lawsuits Democracy Forward’s lawsuit asks for records that would be revealing regarding:
- OMB’s internal effects and legal analyses of the freeze on financial aid before the announcement.
- Most significant communications of OMB political appointees, such as interactions with external actors and political actors outside the federal government.
- White House directives or orders from so-called “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE) and other administration officials regarding how to implement the funding freeze.
- Documents that mention individuals who worked on creating and carrying out such policies, including political appointees and transition team members.
This is the second FOIA lawsuit Democracy Forward has filed since the Trump-Vance administration took office.
Legal action filed against the Departments of Treasury, Education, and the Small Business Administration
DOGE Transparency Foia Lawsuits We brought a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of the Treasury (DOT), the U.S. Department of Education (DOE), and the Small Business Administration (SBA) for failing to comply with FOIA requests and withholding critical documents on the effect of Elon Musk’s DOGE on federal policymaking.
DOGE Transparency Foia Lawsuits Democracy Forward submitted multiple FOIA requests for communications, directives, and policy records about DOGE’s activities in these agencies. The agencies received the requests, but they failed to release the records under law.
On Friday, the Supreme Court paused a lower court’s order that would have compelled the Department of Government Efficiency to hand over its records to a watchdog organization.
The bigger picture: Elon Musk, the public voice of DOGE’s controversial redo of the federal government, had vowed “maximum transparency” for its operations, including wholesale dismissal and deep budget reductions. But Friday’s decree spares the billionaire department.
Leading the headlines: On a one-page order signed by Chief Justice John Roberts, the high court froze on Friday a D.C. District Court judge’s ruling that DOGE is likely covered by the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
In a Wednesday briefing before the Supreme Court, Solicitor General D. John Sauer contended that DOGE falls outside the scope of FOIA since it serves as an advisory body rather than a federal agency.
What they’re saying: “This is just an administrative move to provide time for the Court to decide the case because the deadline for discovery was looming. This is not an unexpected move. We expect the Court to act on the merits of the government’s petition after the holiday weekend,” said Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, which brought the suit against DOGE, in an emailed statement to Axios.
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Solicitor General John Sauer has also requested that the Supreme Court block a deposition of DOGE administrator Amy Gleason, a relatively low-profile official identified by the Trump administration as leading the budget reduction initiative.
DOGE Transparency Foia Lawsuits The appeal is the fourth of more than a dozen expedited petitions the administration has presented to the Supreme Court in the first four months of President Donald Trump’s second term. The many requests have solicited the justices’ quick action to enjoin lower-court rulings on all manner of things, from Trump’s immigration proposal to his proposals to terminate federal employees. Yet another emergency appeal pending before the justices is also regarding DOGE: a bid by the administration to grant DOGE access to confidential Social Security data.
Wednesday’s case is one in which Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington is suing the Freedom of Information Act to gain records about DOGE activities.
The Trump administration contends that DOGE, also known as the U.S. DOGE Service, is exempt from FOIA because DOGE only advises the president and federal agency officials and does not have independent decision-making authority.
But in a series of rulings beginning in March, U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper ruled there were strong indications DOGE was indeed directing cuts and layoffs at numerous federal agencies. That substantive operational role puts DOGE’s activities under the Freedom of Information Act, the judge wrote.
Anthony explained that one advantage journalists have over the general public is access to well-established contacts and reliable sources they can reach out to directly. In some cases, reporters can even obtain documents without going through the lengthy FOIA process. A clear example is The Washington Post’s exclusive on DOGE’s plans to scale back diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives—information the paper was able to secure and publish well before it could have been released through FOIA.
DOGE Transparency Foia Lawsuits Journalists are also experimenting with new ways to use FOIA beyond simply requesting public records. Jimmy Tobias, who runs the newsletter Public Domain, shared that he often files requests to obtain lists of civil servants at different Interior Department agencies. He then contacts them directly, introducing himself as someone covering the agency and inviting them to talk if they wish. Tobias noted he has received numerous responses this way, though he added that the results may vary, especially in offices where FOIA staff have recently been cut.
“The level of transparency that you have is a reflection of the government that you have,” Lauren Harper, a Freedom of the Press Foundation public records analyst said. “The more you have, the less corruption and the less chance of state capture.” It’s an existential problem, and not one that our federal records legislation or the individuals within the bureaucracy are prepared to handle when you are dealing with someone as fast as Elon Musk.” Legislation like FOIA is needed tools in keeping government accountable. But during the DOGE era, reporters will no longer be able to take records requests as a given. “Luckily,” Tobias explained, “a lot of folks are so upset with what’s going on that they’ll talk.”
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