- GAO report released on Thursday found that DOGE, the Department of Government Efficiency, overstated its savings by billions, inflating its claim of $110 billion.
- The GAO highlighted that DOGE took credit for lease cancellations that were initiated before the group was established.
- Unverifiable data was a significant issue, as DOGE claimed savings from contracts that were never terminated, including a $1.7 billion defense contract.
- The GAO found that of the 13,476 contracts DOGE claimed to have terminated, no termination action was taken on 2,503 of them.
- The report also noted that DOGE's claimed savings of $113 million from cuts to 264 leases were overstated, with actual savings amounting to $53.5 million.
- DOGE was launched at the start of President Trump's second term and aimed to reduce government spending through various cost-cutting measures.
- Elon Musk, who led DOGE until May 2025, initially promised to save as much as $2 trillion annually by cutting federal jobs and programs.
- Despite its claims, DOGE's own estimates indicated it fell short of its savings goal, reporting approximately $214 billion in cuts.
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has released a report detailing significant discrepancies in the savings claims made by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
According to the GAO, DOGE overstated its savings by billions, including a $110 billion figure that was inflated with unverifiable data.12467
The report highlights that DOGE took credit for lease cancellations that were initiated before the group was established, raising serious questions about the integrity of its claims.3
Among the findings, the GAO noted that of the 13,476 contracts DOGE claimed to have terminated, no termination action was taken on 2,503 of them.5
Furthermore, the GAO found that DOGE's reported savings from 264 leases were overstated, with actual savings amounting to only $53.5 million instead of the claimed $113 million.
Of these leases, 108 were already in the termination process before DOGE was formed, accounting for approximately $15.3 million of the total.
The GAO's audit, requested by Democratic Senators Gary Peters and Richard Blumenthal, covered savings data from January 20, 2025, to July 7, 2026.
Senator Peters criticized DOGE's efforts as a "slapdash and deceptive" initiative that misled the public.
The report also emphasized that DOGE did not provide sufficient information to verify 96% of its reported savings, indicating a lack of transparency in its operations.
In a social media post, DOGE stated that while its formal mission has ended, the commitment to eliminate waste and ensure accountable government will continue.
“The GAO found that of 13,476 contracts DOGE claimed terminated, no action was taken on 2,503. It also reported that 108 of 264 leases were already in termination before DOGE formed, and the actual savings from those leases totaled $53.5 million, not the claimed $113 million.”
cnbc.com
BBC
