Some of Doge's $110bn saving reports are wrong or lack evidence, US watchdog finds

A US government watchdog has determined that some of the savings reported by Doge, an organization tasked with reducing US government spending, are "incorrect or lack supporting evidence."

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report on Thursday that extensively reviewed Doge's claims regarding its "Wall of Receipts," which asserted $110 billion (£82 billion) in savings across contracts, grants, and leases. The report stated, "Several issues limit the transparency and reliability of these reported savings."

When asked for comment, a White House official indicated that the administration had informed the GAO that all employees were required to complete ethics training and adhere to financial disclosure regulations.

Doge, which stood for the Department of Government Efficiency, was not an official government department. It was launched at the beginning of President Trump's second term and ceased operations last month. Its "Wall of Receipts" was an online platform designed to display its claimed savings of taxpayer money.

Elon Musk, the billionaire CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, previously led Doge but departed in May 2025. He initially pledged to save up to $2 trillion annually through measures such as cutting federal jobs and closing government programs. However, even by Doge's own calculations, it fell short of this target, with its website claiming an estimated $214 billion in savings.

The GAO report reiterated, "While Doge provided some information about estimated savings, several issues limit the transparency and reliability of these reported savings." It further noted that Doge had not been transparent about its savings calculation methods, highlighting that it "did not provide sufficient information to verify the method used to calculate 96% of Doge-reported savings."

Among the specific findings, the GAO discovered that 108 of the 264 leases Doge identified for termination were already in the process of ending before Doge was established. This accounts for approximately $15.3 million of the total $53.5 million in savings Doge claimed from terminated leases. The GAO stated, "The Wall of Receipts does not include an explanation of how the savings from terminated leases were calculated."

The report also cited claims of unachieved savings, such as $1.7 billion for ending a defense department contract for IT services. The congressional watchdog's report indicated that this contract was never terminated, meaning no savings were realized. The GAO assessed, "While the Wall of Receipts includes some information about the data and sources underlying reported savings, it does not sufficiently disclose limitations affecting data quality."

The GAO audit, requested by Democratic Senators Gary Peters and Richard Blumenthal, examined savings data reported from January 20, 2025, to July 7, 2026.

Senator Peters commented in a Thursday statement, "Everyone supports rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal government, but Doge was a slapdash and deceptive effort that misled the American people while doing real damage to the government's ability to serve them."

Under Musk's leadership, Doge advocated for significant reductions in the federal workforce and the closure of programs and even agencies, including the US Agency for International Development (USAID). Some of Doge's actions faced legal challenges or were reversed. For instance, when the group's cost-cutting led to the firing of bird flu officials at the US Department of Agriculture, the Trump administration sought to re-hire them days later.

In a social media post last month announcing its closure, Doge stated: "While the formal mission of Doge has come to an end, the mission to eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse will continue. Good stewardship of taxpayer dollars and accountable government are not temporary initiatives."