February 21, 2025
Nineteen state attorneys general sued to stop Elon Musk's team from reading Social Security numbers, bank accounts, and tax data stored in the Bureau of Fiscal Service — and two federal judges agreed.
DOGE operatives accessed the Bureau of Fiscal Service on January 31, 2025 without standard background checks required of career Treasury staff
The Bureau of Fiscal Service processes roughly $6 trillion per year and stores SSNs, bank account numbers, and home addresses of virtually every American who has received a federal payment
19 state attorneys general sued within hours of access being granted, citing Privacy Act of 1974 violations
Judge Vargas described the process as chaotic and haphazard in her February 21 preliminary injunction ruling
DOGE has no statutory authority — Congress never passed a law creating it as a federal agency
New York Attorney General
U.S. District Judge, Southern District of New York
U.S. District Judge, Southern District of New York
DOGE leader
Treasury Secretary
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Search Congress.gov for DOGE's enabling legislation to verify its statutory authority
Every legitimate federal agency has enabling legislation in the U.S. Code that defines its powers and limits. The absence of enabling legislation for DOGE is a documented fact that citizens can verify directly in under two minutes.
You can check whether a federal agency has statutory authority by searching Congress.gov for enabling legislation — DOGE has none. Go to congress.gov and search for 'Department of Government Efficiency.' You will find no authorizing statute because DOGE was created by executive order, not by Congress. Compare this to a real federal agency like the Office of Management and Budget, which was created by statute (31 U.S.C. § 501). This contrast illustrates a fundamental distinction: agencies created by Congress have defined missions, budget oversight, and public accountability mechanisms; executive offices created by presidential order do not.
legal resource
File a Privacy Act request for records federal agencies hold about you
The Privacy Act gives every American the right to see what the federal government knows about them and to correct errors. Understanding this right and how to use it is essential civic knowledge when executive agencies expand their data access.
The Privacy Act of 1974 lets individuals request and correct records federal agencies hold about them. Read the DOJ's Privacy Act guidance at justice.gov/opcl/privacy-act-1974, which explains your rights and how to exercise them. To file a request, identify which agency you believe holds records about you, find their Privacy Act contact on their website, and send a written request identifying yourself and describing what records you seek. The agency must respond within 30 days. If your records show errors or unauthorized access, you have the right to request correction. This matters when executive power expands into payment and benefit systems that contain personal data.
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Track federal court injunctions against DOGE through CourtListener to follow enforcement
Court injunctions are living legal documents with real enforcement mechanisms. Tracking them through CourtListener is the most direct way to follow whether judicial checks on executive action are actually working.
Court injunctions stay in force while appeals proceed unless a higher court grants a stay — track federal cases involving DOGE at CourtListener.com by searching 'DOGE Treasury.' Court injunctions are not just news events — they are enforceable legal orders that carry contempt consequences if violated. Reading the injunction orders directly shows exactly what the court prohibited, under what legal theory, and what it found to be likely violations of law. Following the appeals tells you whether higher courts are upholding or reversing the district court's findings — which determines whether DOGE's access to Treasury systems resumes or stays blocked.