A divided federal appeals court panel on April 7 ruled that the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) can access records in two federal agencies, reversing a lower court order.
The Virginia-based appeals court also voted 8–7 against taking up the issue “en banc,” in which all judges on the court would decide.
Boardman’s order in March also restricted DOGE’s access to the Treasury Department. An injunction issued by another district judge in New York that blocked the organization’s access to Treasury data remains in effect.
Groups including the American Federation of Teachers sued to prevent DOGE personnel from reviewing data such as Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses, income, citizenship status, and student loans for millions of Americans. They argued that DOGE’s access would violate federal laws including the Privacy Act of 1974.
“Enacted 50 years ago, the Privacy Act protects from unauthorized disclosure the massive amounts of personal information that the federal government collects from large swaths of the public,” Boardman wrote.
“Those concerns are just as salient today. No matter how important or urgent the President’s DOGE agenda may be, federal agencies must execute it in accordance with the law. That likely did not happen in this case.”
Individuals affiliated with DOGE were given access to systems that contain personal information, including Social Security numbers, banking information, home addresses, dates of birth, and other data such as citizenship and marital status, according to Boardman’s order.
The Department of Justice (DOJ), arguing on behalf of DOGE and the sued agencies, said that the plaintiffs lack standing to file a lawsuit and are not likely to succeed on the merits of their legal challenge.
“Plaintiffs lack standing because they have not suffered any cognizable ... injury” and have engaged merely in speculation that “has not shown that they likely face imminent irreparable harm,” government attorneys argued.
“[The] equities and the public interest support permitting the government to exercise its lawful authority to hire employees and give those employees access to systems as required for their job duties,” the DOJ attorneys said.
The appeals court’s April 7 order sided with the DOJ, agreeing that the plaintiffs appear to lack standing.
“I am deeply skeptical that the district court remained within its discretion when finding that the plaintiffs were likely to prevail. ... and with such certainty that they were likely to succeed overall,” Fourth Circuit Judge G. Steven Agee wrote for the majority.
“In light of the plaintiffs’ multiplicative problem, the government has made a strong showing that it will prevail on the merits.”
Created by President Donald Trump via executive order, DOGE is tasked with downsizing the federal government and finding fraud, waste, and abuse.
“The DOGE Team is essentially engaged in a fishing expedition at SSA, in search of a fraud epidemic, based on little more than suspicion,” U.S. District Judge Ellen Hollander wrote on March 21.
Meanwhile, some courts have ruled in favor of the Trump administration and DOGE. In late March, an appeals court lifted an order blocking DOGE from recommending cuts to the U.S. Agency for International Development, which the administration has sought to break up.
