 "File image of Elon Musk. Reuters")
A federal judge on Thursday temporarily halted Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from accessing specific payment records from the Treasury Department, according to a report.
“Treasury officials will not provide access to any payment record or payment system of records maintained within the (Treasury) Bureau of Fiscal Service,” Fox News quoted Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly as writing in a temporary restraining order.
That programme handles an estimated 90% of federal payments.
The order follows a proposed court agreement on Wednesday from the Justice Department to restrict access to sensitive records to just two “special government employees” within DOGE, who will have read-only access.
Kollar-Kotelly approved the motion in a brief order on Thursday, reported Fox News.
Several government employee unions filed a lawsuit regarding access to these materials as part of a comprehensive evaluation of programs and systems led by DOGE.
The lawsuit alleged that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent granted improper access to Elon Musk’s team, potentially exposing personal financial information to unauthorised individuals.
Under the order, only Musk ally Tom Krause, CEO of Cloud Software Group, and Marko Elez – an engineer and former Musk company employee - will continue to have access to Treasury’s Fiscal Service, but they will not be allowed to make any changes to the programme.
The order identifies both Krause and Elez as “Special Government Employee[s] in the Department of the Treasury.”
With inputs from agencies