A previous ruling preventing employees of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from accessing a sensitive federal payment system at the Treasury Department was extended by a federal judge on Friday.
U.S. District Judge Jeannette Vargas partially granted the request of 19 Democratic attorneys general, who are suing to block the DOGE team from the Bureau of Fiscal Service. The system handles 90 percent of federal payments.
Vargas, on the other hand, narrowed her previous decision, which forbade all political appointees and special government employees with the exception of Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and other senior department leaders who had been confirmed by the Senate.
Instead of seeking to block a particular category of employees as before, the Democratic attorneys general had asked the court to bar the Trump administration from developing processes to halt payments coming through the payment system.
Vargas denied this request, stating that the states had not demonstrated that they were entitled to "the broad and sweeping relief they seek."
Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford, who is part of the suit, described Friday’s decision as a “victory for the rule of law and for Nevadans.”
Ford said in a statement that he would "fight back against any attempt to illegally skirt those protections or dismantle our system of checks and balances." "Our country has systems in place to ensure our government runs smoothly and our citizens are protected," Ford said.
“By allowing DOGE staff to access Department of Treasury data, President Trump broke the law and endangered the private, personal information of Nevadans and Americans,” he added.
While Vargas blocked DOGE staff from accessing the payment system for now, she laid out a process through which she could eventually grant them access.
The judge ordered administration officials to certify by March 24 that the Treasury’s DOGE team members have received the training typically required to access the Fiscal Service, as well as provide details about their vetting and security clearances, among other requirements.
Vargas stated that she would then decide whether to modify or lift the injunction. In a separate lawsuit Friday, another federal judge rejected a similar request from a non-profit to bar DOGE employees from accessing data systems at both the Treasury and the Office of Personnel Management.
“Given the extraordinary nature of the remedy and the speculative, attenuated nature of the potential harm that Plaintiffs face, the Court cannot issue injunctive relief based on the current record before it,” U.S. District Judge Rossie Alston wrote.
