Attorney General Anthony G. Brown has joined forces with 19 other state attorneys general to file a lawsuit against the Trump administration. The lawsuit seeks to block what they argue is the unlawful disclosure of Americans’ private and sensitive information to Elon Musk and members of the “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE).
The legal action asserts that the Trump administration has provided Musk and DOGE unauthorized access to the U.S. Treasury Department’s central payment system, which handles vital financial transactions for millions of Americans. This system controls payments for critical services such as Social Security, veteran benefits, Medicare, Medicaid, and funding for states’ public services.
“The president is threatening the banking system Marylanders rely on,” said Maryland Attorney General Brown. “This policy hands a wealthy businessman’s associates unauthorized access to tens of millions of people’s sensitive information. Our Office will not allow the federal government to play politics with people’s lives and livelihoods.”
“This is a coup, plain and simple. The actions of DOGE are illegal, illegitimate, and a direct threat to democracy and the privacy rights of all Americans,” said Arizona Attorney General Mayes. “That’s why today, we sued the Trump administration and the Treasury secretary to stop the illegal actions being carried out by an unelected weirdo billionaire and his group of teenage hackers.”
“Coloradans expect their federal government to take appropriate steps to protect their private information and for the executive branch to follow the law,” Colorado Arizona Attorney General Weiser said. “The sharing of this sensitive information, reportedly without safeguards on who is receiving access or how they are using this information, risks Coloradans’ privacy, threatens to undermine critical governmental programs, and is taking place without any legal justification. When Coloradans are threatened by illegal actions such as this one, my duty as Attorney General is to take action and require the federal government to act lawfully and appropriately.”
Under a new policy implemented on February 2, 2025, the Treasury Department granted “special government employees,” including Musk and members of DOGE, access to the Bureau of Fiscal Services (BFS), which administers the payment system. Access to BFS is typically limited to career civil servants with security clearances, and the attorneys general argue that this policy expansion violates federal law and jeopardizes Americans’ personal data.
The lawsuit, filed in conjunction with the coalition, aims to prevent the continued expansion of this access, arguing that the new policy could allow Musk and other political appointees to freeze federal funds, disrupting essential services. The coalition seeks an injunction to halt the policy and a declaration that it is unconstitutional.
“Federal law limits access to Americans’ personal and self-identifying information to specific government workers who have passed extensive and thorough security clearances. Unelected political appointees who have not been appropriately vetted should not be allowed to have unrestricted access to Americans’ sensitive personal information and our nation’s most critical payment system,” Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul said. “My office has been committed to helping protect Illinois residents’ personal information, and I am joining my colleagues in filing this lawsuit to stop unfettered access to this sensitive data and require members of DOGE to follow the law.”
“In violation of clearly established law, President Trump has granted Elon Musk and an unknown group of associates a green light to blow through statutory confidentiality protections for personal identifying information held by the federal government,” said Main Attorney General Aaron M. Frey. “This unlawful access to confidential information by an unelected billionaire and his anonymous team has not only raised significant concern and anxiety by those whose information may be compromised, but it also is just another demonstration of the complete disregard for the rule of law by this presidential administration – and we are not even through week three.”
“This level of access for unauthorized individuals is unlawful, unprecedented, and unacceptable. DOGE has no authority to access this information, which they explicitly sought in order to block critical payments that millions of Americans rely on – payments that support health care, childcare, and other essential programs,” said Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison. “In defense of our Constitution, our right to privacy, and the essential funding that individuals and communities nationwide are counting on, we will be filing a lawsuit to stop this injustice.”
“The people of Hawaiʻi have the right to expect that their personal information held by
the federal government will be strictly used only for its intended and lawful purpose and
will otherwise be held secure,” said Hawai’i Attorney General Anne Lopez. “The state of Hawaiʻi
will stand up to ensure that the trust we put in our federal institutions is repaid in kind.”
Joining Attorney General Brown in the lawsuit are the attorneys general from Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wisconsin.
“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. The President does not have the power to give away our private information to anyone he chooses, and he cannot cut federal payments approved by Congress,” said New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin.
“This level of access for unauthorized individuals is unlawful, unprecedented, and unacceptable. DOGE has no authority to access this information, which they explicitly sought in order to block critical payments that millions of Americans rely on – payments that support health care, childcare, and other essential programs.”
“In defense of our Constitution, our right to privacy, and the essential funding that individuals and communities nationwide are counting on, we will be filing a lawsuit to stop this injustice.”
