A Federal judge issued a ruling late Friday that allows Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to continue accessing sensitive data at the Department of Labor, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
In a win for the Trump administration, U.S. District Judge John Bates in Washington, D.C., declined a request by unions and nonprofits to temporarily block DOGE from accessing sensitive information systems at the three agencies.
“As it said previously, the Court has serious concerns about the privacy concerns raised by this case, and those concerns are all the graver now that the data includes information on all Americans who rely on Medicare and Medicaid, as well as countless consumers,” Bates wrote in his opinion.
“However, on the record before it, the Court does not conclude that plaintiffs are entitled to the extraordinary relief of a temporary restraining order,” he said.
Despite the judge’s privacy concerns, his decision came down to whether or not DOGE is considered an “agency.” After hearing arguments from both sides on Friday, Bates ultimately decided that DOGE is an “agency” in the eyes of the law and therefore “may detail its employees to other agencies consistent with the Economy Act.”
Musk celebrated Friday’s ruling in a post on X. The decision is one of many expected to come regarding DOGE’s access to Federal agency data.
In a differing result, U.S. District Judge Jeannette Vargas in New York extended a temporary block on DOGE on Friday that prevents Musk’s team from accessing the Treasury Department’s payment systems.
The order – originally issued by Judge Paul Engelmayer in New York – comes after attorneys general from 19 states filed a lawsuit to try and stop DOGE from accessing Treasury Department systems that manage trillions of dollars of payments every year. In the lawsuit, the states claim Musk has no legal power to access the systems.
In extending the temporary restraining order, Vargas did not rule on whether to issue a preliminary injunction to further block DOGE’s access. However, she suggested her decision will come over the next few days.
