A task force aimed at reducing the size of the US government, led by Elon Musk, is facing a lawsuit alleging it violated the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) by lacking a fair balance of viewpoints and operating in secrecy. The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is accused of holding meetings without public notice, keeping its records inaccessible, and communicating on encrypted platforms, raising concerns about transparency and potential conflicts of interest.
A task force created to reduce the size of the US government has been operating in violation of a 1972 law requiring a fair balance of viewpoints on all government advisory bodies. The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by Elon Musk , was tasked with cutting the federal government workforce and spending. However, DOGE is facing a legal challenge that could halt the ongoing purge of the US government.DOGE, despite its name, is not a department of the US government.
It functions as an advisory body, meaning it cannot act independently of the 15 executive departments that comprise the federal US government. More importantly, every government advisory platform in the US must adhere to the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), a 1972 law that formalizes the process for establishing, operating, overseeing, and terminating government advisory bodies.A lawsuit filed by the American Federation of Government Employees, advocacy group Public Citizen, and non-profit State Democracy Defenders Fund alleges that DOGE is violating FACA primarily because its members lack a “fair balance of viewpoints”, a key legal requirement for all government advisory bodies. The lawsuit claims that DOGE meetings are held in secret and without public notice, while its records remain inaccessible to US citizens, all of which violate FACA requirements. Successive US presidents have used FACA to establish commissions or task forces to seek advice from the private sector. However, the law imposes specific safeguards on these bodies to prevent them from becoming “vehicles for advancing private interests” in the federal decision-making process, the lawsuit argues.DOGE appears to have violated several FACA provisions. For example, neither President Trump nor his Office of Management and Budget has filed a “charter” for DOGE. Under FACA, no advisory committee can meet or take any action until its charter, containing crucial information like the committee’s scope of activity, description of duties and expected operating costs, has been filed. The lawsuit also raises concerns about DOGE’s access to sensitive information. Musk’s team has reportedly gained access to the US Treasury Department’s payment system, which disburses over $6 trillion annually on behalf of federal agencies and contains the personal information of millions of Americans. “Operating without complying with FACA, DOGE has already begun developing recommendations and influencing decision-making in the new administration, even though its membership lacks the fair balance,” the lawsuit states. FACA mandates that reports, minutes, and studies prepared by an advisory committee must be “available for public inspection”. Its meetings must be attended by a federal officer, and only that officer is authorized to call a meeting, according to the law.The lawsuit further alleges that DOGE members have conducted much of their communication “on Signal, the encrypted messaging app,” and have not made these communications available to the public. The lawsuit asks the US District Court for the District of Columbia to declare the creation and administration of DOGE unlawful and in violation of FACA.The legal challenge against DOGE has also garnered support from other parties. These include unions representing employees of the US Treasury who seek to block the Trump administration from weakening job protections for career civil servants and replacing them with party loyalists.
Department Of Government Efficiency (DOGE) Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) Elon Musk US Government Task Force Legal Challenge Transparency
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