Will the Supreme Court force a secretive government efficiency agency to reveal its inner workings to the public?

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Maybe, but not yet. The Supreme Court has agreed to hear the DOGE records case, and its ruling will determine whether a watchdog can obtain information needed to show that the U.S. DOGE Service functioned like a federal agency subject to the Freedom of Information Act. The central legal question is not yet whether all DOGE records must be released, but whether Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington can pursue discovery to establish DOGE’s true status. The Trump administration says DOGE was only a presidential advisory body inside the Executive Office of the President, which would generally place it outside FOIA. CREW argues DOGE exercised real operational power by helping drive firings, agency shutdowns, and the cancellation of contracts and grants, which would make public-records obligations more likely. Lower courts have largely sided with CREW, with a federal judge saying DOGE was “likely” covered by FOIA. But the Supreme Court previously narrowed a broad discovery order, citing separation-of-powers concerns and the need for restraint when courts seek internal executive-branch information. The justices have now taken the case for a fuller ruling, with arguments expected next year and a decision likely by late June. So the Court could open a path to public disclosure, but it is not certain to force DOGE to reveal its inner workings. A ruling for CREW would mainly allow fact-finding to continue and strengthen the case for eventual FOIA access. A ruling for the…

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