The US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has officially been terminated, 18 months after its creation.
President Donald Trump appointed Elon Musk, the American billionaire and founder of Tesla Inc., in November 2024 to lead DOGE, an initiative created to improve efficiency and cut costs within the US government. At the time, Trump was the president-elect.
After assuming office in January 2025, Trump signed an executive order formally establishing DOGE. The initiative was slated to expire on July 4, 2026.
Under Musk, DOGE launched sweeping efforts to reduce the federal workforce and overhaul agencies, including United States Agency for International Development (USAID), with the stated mission of eliminating fraud, waste and abuse.
DOGE’s cost-cutting measures led to more than 260,000 federal employees to leave government service in 2025, according to the office of management and budget.
The departures included reductions in force, early retirements, deferred resignation programmes and a hiring freeze.
But midway through Trump’s first year in office, Musk publicly criticised the president’s “Big Beautiful Bill” and accused him of undoing his “hard work” at DOGE, straining the friendship between the two.
A day after the criticism, Musk announced his exit from DOGE.
Advocacy and labour groups have now intensified demands to Congress to investigate DOGE after reports emerged that the agency had access to sensitive data from the treasury department, social security administration, and payment systems.
More than a dozen lawsuits have also been filed over the past year challenge the Trump administration’s actions, including cancelled grants, mass layoffs, and the closure of major federally funded programmes.
Federal agencies are now said to be actively hiring again, with more than 104,000 new positions listed in the first five months of this year.
