A White House official said the agency will not comply because it is not subject to the Freedom of Information Act but rather the Presidential Records Act.
WASHINGTON—Two high-ranking House Democrats are seeking records from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) of its activities, structure, and more.
Democrats have been pushing back on the Elon Musk-led advisory body that has sought to identify and root out waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal government in accordance with President Donald Trump’s executive order. DOGE has also recommended cuts to the federal workforce.
House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) and House Oversight Committee Ranking Member Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) sent a 15-page Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to DOGE on March 17 with four requests to be fulfilled within 20 days.
In a letter to DOGE Acting Administrator Amy Gleason, the two asked for “clear answers to basic questions about DOGE, including who is in charge, the scope of its authority over federal agencies and workers, what government data it has access to, and whether DOGE is serving the interests of the American people or the interests of Mr. Musk’s companies and his foreign customers.”
The first request was for the names of those working for DOGE and records concerning DOGE’s access to sensitive information and data in the government. It also asks for instructions given by DOGE to its employees in fulfilling its operations.
“The administration and Mr. Musk have hidden behind a veil of secrecy as they systematically dismantle the federal government of the United States,” Raskin and Connolly alleged in their letter to Gleason. “The administration has repeatedly refused to respond to basic congressional oversight requests regarding DOGE’s activities.”
The third ask is for the job titles, job descriptions, and other information surrounding 42 DOGE team members including Musk and Gleason. Raskin and Connolly requested the resumes, non-disclosure agreements, and other items from those listed.
In their letter to Gleason, Raskin and Connolly noted there has been confusion surrounding DOGE such as who is in charge.
Additionally, the Democrat House members asked for email and other communications from Musk, Gleason, and the 40 other DOGE members that include key words such as “SpaceX,” “Twitter,” “Airbnb,” and “Tesla.” These words are related to Musk’s own businesses.
Raskin and Connolly stated they want to see if there are conflicts of interest surrounding DOGE.
“By filing these FOIA requests, which every American has the right to make in order to demand transparency from our government, we demand to know about DOGE’s leadership structure, legal authority, and potential conflicts of interest; its involvement with the government-wide firing of personnel; and its treatment of sensitive data and AI,” they wrote.
A White House official told The Epoch Times that DOGE does not need to comply with the request since, as a part of the White House, it is not subject to FOIA, but rather the Presidential Records Act.
Presidential records are eligible for access under FOIA five years after the president leaves office, according to the National Archives.