The Trump administration’s much-hyped Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has dissolved with months left on its mandate, federal officials say.
Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Director Scott Kupor confirmed to Reuters earlier this month that DOGE “doesn’t exist” as a “centralized entity.”
Then-President-elect Trump announced the creation of DOGE — named after the widely memed Shiba Inu dog — on Nov. 12, initially tapping X and Tesla boss Elon Musk and biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy to lead the initiative.
“Their work will conclude no later than July 4, 2026 – A smaller Government, with more efficiency and less bureaucracy, will be the perfect gift to America on the 250th Anniversary of The Declaration of Independence,” Trump wrote on Truth Social at the time. “I am confident they will succeed!”
Ramaswamy bowed out to focus on his run for governor of Ohio, with the incoming administration confirming his departure on inauguration day.
With Musk as the driving force — though not the formal leader — of DOGE, the organization set to work to rapidly shrink federal agencies, cut their budgets or redirect their work to Trump priorities.
The South Africa-born billionaire appeared to revel in the task, at one point brandishing a chainsaw at February’s Conservative Political Action Conference that had been gifted him by Argentina President Javier Milei.
“This is the chainsaw for bureaucracy,” Musk declared to a cheering crowd.
As a special government employee (SGEs), Musk left the Trump administration at the end of May, in accordance with the rule that SGEs can only serve for 130 days out of each 365-day period.
After a falling out with Trump over the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, Musk reappeared in Washington last week, attending a White House dinner honoring Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Nov. 18.
The OPM, the federal government’s human resources office, has since taken over many of DOGE’s functions, Kupor told the wire service.
At least two prominent DOGE employees are now involved with the National Design Studio, a new body created through an executive order signed by Trump in August. That body is headed by Joe Gebbia, co-founder of Airbnb, and Trump’s order directed him to beautify government websites.
Acting DOGE Administrator Amy Gleason, whose background is in healthcare tech, formally became an adviser to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy in March, according to a court filing, in addition to her role with DOGE. Her public statements have largely focused on her HHS role.
Zachary Terrell, part of the DOGE team given access to government health systems in the early days of Trump’s second term, is now chief technology officer at the Department of Health and Human Services. Rachel Riley, who had the same access according to court filings, is now chief of the Office of Naval Research, according to the office’s website.
Jeremy Lewin, who helped Musk and the Trump administration dismantle the U.S. Agency for International Development, now oversees foreign assistance at the State Department, according to the agency’s website.
A government-wide hiring freeze – another hallmark of DOGE – is also over, Kupor said.
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Trump on his first day in office barred federal agencies from bringing on new employees, with exceptions for positions his team deemed necessary to enforce immigration laws and protect public safety. He later said DOGE representatives must approve any other exceptions, adding that agencies should hire “no more than one employee for every four” that depart.
“There is no target around reductions” anymore, Kupor said.
The administration is still working toward slashing regulations. The White House budget office has tasked Scott Langmack, who was DOGE’s representative at the Department of Housing and Urban Development, with creating custom AI applications to pore through U.S. regulations and determine which ones to eliminate, according to his LinkedIn profile.
DOGE claimed to have slashed tens of billions of dollars in expenditures, but it was impossible for outside financial experts to verify that because the unit did not provide detailed public accounting of its work.
“President Trump was given a clear mandate to reduce waste, fraud and abuse across the federal government, and he continues to actively deliver on that commitment,” said White House spokeswoman Liz Huston in an email to Reuters.
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