Musk and DOGE are currently facing at least 20 other lawsuits, with one accusing the department of violating federal transparency laws.
A federal judge has ordered an official from Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency to provide testimony and documents in response to a lawsuit filed on behalf of the American Federation of Labor and other unions.
According to NBC News, the official’s testimony will mark the first time that anybody involved in DOGE will be required to answer questions from a non-government attorney. In his decision, U.S. District Judge John Bates noted that the testimony could be used to clarify the operations of DOGE, an organization that Bates called “opaque.”
Lawyers for the American Federation of Labor and its co-plaintiffs are now asking Bates to prevent DOGE from accessing U.S. Department of Labor data. In court documents, the plaintiffs characterized this data as “highly-sensitive,” potentially including “medical and benefits information about all federal workers with worker compensation” and “the identities of vulnerable workers who have sought the Department’s protection in wage disputes and occupational safety complaints.”
Doge would also be able to obtain “information regarding investigations of Mr. [Elon] Musk’s corporate interests and the sensitive trade secret information held by the Department.”
On Thursday, Bates said that asking a DOGE official to testify will not likely “burden” the Department of Government Efficiency’s operations.
“The written discovery largely seeks only individuals’ identities, dates, and names of systems, as well as documents that defendants’ own declarations have referenced,” Bates wrote.
Bates also authorized at least four depositions with staffers from the Department of Health and Human Services, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Labor Department, and DOGE.
NBC News reports that DOGE’s controversial operations have attracted scrutiny from labor activists and lawmakers alike.
Musk and DOGE are currently facing at least 20 other lawsuits, with one accusing the department of violating federal transparency laws. In its own lawsuit, the Center for Biological Diversity said that it is seeking “records regarding, among other matters, the staffing, calendars, and communications of the renamed and reformed United States Digital Service now the United States DOGE Service (DOGE).”
Even some Republican politicians have sought greater transparency about DOGE, with several senators demanding more insight during a Wednesday meeting with White House chief of staff Susie Wiles.
President Donald Trump has continued to defend Musk’s less-than-transparent role in the federal government.
“He’s sacrificing a lot and getting a lot of praise,” Trump said during a cabinet meeting at which Musk was present. “But he’s also getting hit. And we would expect that, and that’s the way it works.”
Sources
Judge orders DOGE employee to testify in lawsuit against the Trump administration
Judge orders Trump officials to sit for depositions in lawsuit over DOGE access to federal databases
Join the conversation!