The U.S. government’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), an initiative launched by President Donald Trump at the start of his second term with the stated goal of aggressively cutting federal spending and shrinking agencies, has been quietly dissolved. The unit, which was initially led by billionaire Elon Musk, ended operations approximately eight months before its mandate was set to expire in mid-2026.
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Director, Scott Kupor, confirmed that DOGE is no longer a “centralized entity” and that many of its responsibilities have been shifted to the OPM and other existing federal structures.
High-Profile Launch, Unclear Impact
DOGE was introduced with significant fanfare, symbolizing Trump’s promise to reduce the size of the federal bureaucracy.
- Initial Leadership: The unit was initially led by Elon Musk, who actively promoted its work online and even used a chainsaw as a prop to symbolize cutting government bureaucracy and jobs.
- Lack of Measurable Savings: Despite making aggressive attempts to reduce government staff and budgets and claiming to have slashed billions, DOGE never released detailed, verifiable accounts of its cost savings, making its true impact difficult to measure.
- Hiring Freeze Lifted: The government-wide hiring freeze associated with DOGE has also officially ended, according to the OPM.
Former DOGE Members Reassigned
Following the dissolution, several key members of the former DOGE team have transitioned into other influential roles within the administration:
- Joe Gebbia (Airbnb co-founder and former DOGE member) now heads a new design studio tasked with improving government websites.
- Zachary Terrell has taken over as the Chief Technology Officer at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
- Rachel Riley has moved on to lead the Office of Naval Research.
- Jeremy Lewin is now in charge of foreign aid programs at the State Department.
Despite the shutdown of the centralized department, the administration confirmed that efforts to reduce regulations continue, with new AI tools being used to review and eliminate outdated rules. Meanwhile, several Republican-led states are reportedly attempting to establish their own versions of DOGE.