Democratic Attorneys General Band Together To Stop Largest Data Breach on Personal Identifiable Information (PII) In Federal Government Computers

Attorney General James Leads Multistate Coalition in Suing to Stop Elon Musk and DOGE’s Attacks on Americans

February 7, 2025 NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James today led a coalition of 18 other attorneys general in filing a lawsuit against the Trump administration to stop the unauthorized disclosure of Americans’ private information and sensitive data. Attorney General James’ lawsuit asserts that the Trump administration illegally provided Elon Musk and the so-called “Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)” unauthorized access to the Treasury Department’s central payment system, and therefore to Americans’ most sensitive personal information, including bank account details and Social Security numbers. This expanded access could allow Musk and his team to block federal funds to states and programs providing health care, childcare, and other critical services. With this lawsuit, Attorney General James and the coalition of attorneys general are seeking to stop the Trump administration’s new policy that illegally grants DOGE, Musk, and others access to Americans’ confidential information and the U.S. Treasury’s payment systems.

“As the richest man in the world, Elon Musk is not used to being told ‘no,’ but in our country, no one is above the law,” said Attorney General James. “President Trump does not have the power to give away Americans’ private information to anyone he chooses, and he cannot cut federal payments approved by Congress. Musk and DOGE have no authority to access Americans’ private information and some of our country’s most sensitive data. I am taking action to keep our information secure, and to prevent any unconstitutional freeze on essential funding that Americans rely on every day.”

Beginning February 2, 2025, the Trump administration’s Treasury Department adopted a new policy that grants “special government employees,” including Elon Musk and members of DOGE, access to its central payment system operated by the Bureau of Fiscal Services (BFS). This central payment system controls vital funding that millions of Americans depend on, including Social Security payments, veteran’s benefits, Medicare and Medicaid payments, and more. The payment system also controls billions of dollars that states rely on to support essential services like law enforcement, public education, and infrastructure repairs.

Access to BFS is limited by federal law to a select group of career civil servants with the appropriate security clearances. Attorney General James and the coalition assert the Treasury Department’s new policy, which expands access to BFS’s payment system, violates the law, jeopardizes Americans’ most sensitive personal information, and would allow Elon Musk and other unauthorized political appointees to access a system that could permit them to freeze federal funds with the click of a button in violation of the Constitution.

With this lawsuit, Attorney General James and the [coalition of attorneys general are seeking an injunction preventing the Trump administration from continuing its new policy of expanded access to BFS’s payment system, as well as a declaration that the Treasury Department’s policy change is unlawful and unconstitutional.

Joining Attorney General James in filing the lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wisconsin.

This matter is being handled by Special Counsel Andrew Amer, Special Counsel for Complex Litigation Colleen Faherty, and Special Counsel for Federal Initiatives Rabia Muqaddam, under the supervision of First Deputy Attorney General Jennifer Levy.

Attorney General James Releases Statement on Swift Victory in Lawsuit Stopping DOGE’s Attacks on Americans

February 8, 2025 NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James today released the below statement after a federal judge in the Southern District of New York granted her motion for a temporary restraining order (TRO) just a few hours after she led a coalition of 18 other attorneys general in suing to stop Elon Musk and his so-called “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE) from accessing Americans’ private information. Elon Musk and his DOGE employees are now blocked from accessing Americans’ most sensitive personal information and must immediately destroy any and all copies of records they have already obtained.

“From the moment Elon Musk and his DOGE employees gained unprecedented access to our personal private data, state bank account details, and other sensitive information, Americans across the country have been horrified.

“Over the past week, my office has heard from more than a thousand New Yorkers who were afraid they would lose their privacy and the critical funding their communities count on because of Musk and DOGE’s interference.

“We knew the Trump administration’s choice to give this access to unauthorized individuals was illegal, and this morning, a federal court agreed.

“I have said it before, and I will say it again: no one is above the law. Now, Americans can trust that Musk – the world’s richest man – and his friends will not have free rein over their personal information while our lawsuit proceeds.”

Last week, the U.S. Department of the Treasury adopted a new policy that granted “special government employees,” including Elon Musk and DOGE staffers, access to its central payment system. This payment system contains Americans’ private personal data and controls vital funding that millions of Americans depend on, including Social Security payments, veterans’ benefits, Medicare and Medicaid payments, and more. The payment system also controls billions of dollars that states rely on to support essential services like law enforcement, public education, health care, and critical infrastructure.

Yesterday, Attorney General Jsmes led a coalition of 18 other attorneys general in filing a lawsuit against the Trump administration to stop this unauthorized disclosure of Americans’ private information and sensitive data. Early this morning, a federal judge found that the states proved they were likely to succeed on their “particularly strong” statutory claims and would suffer irreparable harm without urgent court intervention.

Elon Musk and his DOGE employees are now blocked from accessing Americans’ most sensitive personal information and must immediately destroy any and all copies of records they have already obtained. The court will hear arguments on Attorney General Jsmes and the coalition’s motion for a preliminary injunction on February 14, 2025.

Joining Attorney General Jsmes in this lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wisconsin.

This matter is being handled by Special Counsel Andrew Amer, Special Counsel for Complex Litigation Colleen K. Faherty, and Special Counsel for Federal Initiatives Rabia Muqaddam, all of the Executive Division. Additional support is being provided by Assistant Attorney General Stephen Thompson and Legal Assistant Nyna Sargent of the Charities Bureau. The Charities Bureau is part of the Division for Social Justice, which is led by Chief Deputy Attorney General Meghan Faux. The Executive Division and the Division for Social Justice are both overseen by First Deputy Attorney General Jennifer Levy.

Attorney General James and 11 Attorneys General Release Joint Statement on Lawsuit to Protect Americans from Elon Musk’s DOGE

February 14, 2025 NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James today led a coalition of 11 other attorneys general in releasing the following statement ahead of a court hearing in their case against the Trump administration for illegally granting Elon Musk and members of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) access to Americans’ private information:

“Last week, Elon Musk and his team got into our nation’s central payment system in the Treasury Department, giving them unauthorized access to the Social Security numbers, bank account information, and other private data of tens of millions of Americans.

“To protect our states’ residents, we filed a lawsuit to stop the madness. Just a few hours later, we won a court order blocking Musk and DOGE from accessing Americans’ personal information and ordering the destruction of all the copies of records they had obtained.

“Elon Musk may be the richest man in the world, but the law is clear: he has no authority to access your private information. The Constitution gives Congress – not the President – primary control over federal spending.”

On February 7, Attorney General James led a coalition of 18 other attorneys general in filing a lawsuit against the Trump administration to stop the unauthorized disclosure of Americans’ private information. Attorney General James’ lawsuit asserts that the Trump administration illegally provided Elon Musk and DOGE unauthorized access to the Treasury Department’s central payment system, and therefore to Americans’ most sensitive personal information. On the morning of February 8, a federal judge in the Southern District of New York granted Attorney General James’ motion for a temporary restraining order (TRO) blocking Elon Musk and his DOGE employees from accessing Americans’ most sensitive personal information and ordering them to immediately destroy any and all copies of records they had already obtained.

Attorney General James and the coalition are today seeking a preliminary injunction to continue to bar the unauthorized access to Americans’ personal data through the Treasury’s payment system.

Joining Attorney General James in releasing this statement are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Oregon.

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