Press Release
February 3, 2025
WASHINGTON – Represented by Public Citizen Litigation Group and State Democracy Defenders Fund, the Alliance for Retired Americans, the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) filed suit today against the Department of the Treasury for sharing confidential data with the so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), run by Elon Musk.
The Department of Treasury maintains the sensitive personal and financial information of millions of Americans, and federal laws protect such data from improper disclosure and misuse, including by barring disclosure to individuals who lack a lawful and legitimate need for it.
Instead of protecting the private information of Americans as required by law, the complaint explains, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent took punitive measures against officials who sought to protect that information from improper access and allowed DOGE full access to the data.
“The scale of the intrusion into individuals’ privacy is massive and unprecedented,” the complaint states, adding “People who must share information with the federal government should not be forced to share information with Elon Musk or his ‘DOGE.’ And federal law says they do not have to.” The Plaintiffs demand an immediate end to the “systematic, continuous, and ongoing violation of federal laws that protect the privacy of personal information contained in federal records.”
“We are outraged and alarmed that the Trump Administration has allowed so-called DOGE staff to violate the law and access millions of older Americans’ sensitive personal and financial data,” said Richard Fiesta, executive director of the Alliance for Retired Americans, a grassroots advocacy organization with 4.4 million members nationwide. “Seniors are already the most vulnerable Americans to fraud and scams, with FBI data showing losses of $3.4 billion in 2023 alone. We urge the court to quickly act to stop this unlawful theft of our data.”
“AFGE is proud to join our partners today in standing up for the privacy rights of American citizens – including those we represent working for the federal government,” said AFGE National President Everett Kelley. “It is disgraceful that the Trump administration has allowed unelected billionaires and their lackeys unfettered access to the personal and financial information of Americans. Together, we can stop this violation of American citizens’ privacy.”
“SEIU is proud to stand with our allies against giving billionaires access to the private data of millions of Americans, including thousands of SEIU members who perform essential services for the federal government,” said SEIU International President April Verrett. “As a candidate, Donald Trump claimed to stand for the working class, but as president, he is putting billionaires like Elon Musk ahead of working people. He is creating chaos and uncertainty, trying to distract us from his efforts to cut back the care and services we all count on to pay for more tax breaks for billionaires. We’ve beaten back Trump’s attacks on working people before, and we are ready to do it again.”
The complaint is available HERE.