WASHINGTON — The Government Accountability Office released a report finding that savings claimed by the Department of Government Efficiency on its "Wall of Receipts" website were incorrect or lacked supporting evidence. The federal watchdog agency determined that widespread data inaccuracies and a lack of transparency undermined the initiative's reported financial reductions.

The GAO evaluated $110 billion in savings reported by DOGE from January 20, 2025, through July 7, 2026. This figure represented the estimated savings across contracts, grants, and leases that the department publicly tallied as of July 7. DOGE also tallied $215 billion in total cuts when including categories beyond those three primary areas.

Auditors found discrepancies in the lease termination data presented on the public-facing website. Specifically, 108 of 264 leases identified for termination on the Wall of Receipts were already in the process of termination when DOGE was established. The GAO report stated that the 264 leases referenced on DOGE's website actually summed to $53.5 million in savings, while DOGE had claimed $113 million. This means DOGE overstated savings from leases by more than $80 million.

Contract termination claims faced similar scrutiny regarding their validity and documentation. DOGE reported $1.7 billion in savings on a Department of Defense contract for IT services, but no action was taken to terminate the contract. Of the 13,476 contracts DOGE claimed it terminated, no termination action was taken on 2,503 of them. More than half of the contracts listed on the Wall of Receipts were either not ended or DOGE did not provide enough information to determine their status.

The methodology used to calculate these figures was also questioned by auditors. DOGE did not use its stated methodology to calculate the savings from a majority of contracts reported as terminated. Additionally, DOGE did not provide sufficient information to verify the method used to calculate 96 percent of DOGE-reported grant savings. The GAO concluded that data quality issues limit the value of the Wall of Receipts for policymakers.

Transparency during the audit process was limited by the department's lack of cooperation. DOGE officials did not respond to GAO requests for information or interviews. In response to these findings, the GAO recommended that DOGE prominently display data quality issues and limitations on the Wall of Receipts.

The audit was initiated following a request from Democratic Senators Gary Peters and Richard Blumenthal. Peters issued a statement criticizing the initiative's execution and its impact on federal operations. "Everyone supports rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal government, but DOGE was a slapdash and deceptive effort that misled the American people while doing real damage to the government's ability to serve them," Peters said.

Peters further detailed the specific failures attributed to the leadership of the department. "Elon Musk and the Trump Administration claimed billions of dollars in savings it could not substantiate, took credit for work already underway, and refused to show its work, all while putting Americans’ sensitive data at risk and hollowing out critical agencies," he added.

The Department of Government Efficiency was established by an executive order issued by President Donald Trump. Elon Musk initially led DOGE operations but stepped back from that role after a few months. The department began posting estimated savings on the Wall of Receipts on February 17, 2025. DOGE operations sunset on July 4, 2026, marking the end of the temporary organization's formal activities.

Why It Matters

The GAO's findings that data quality issues limit the value of the Wall of Receipts restrict policymakers' ability to rely on reported figures for future fiscal decisions. With more than half of listed contracts lacking verified termination status and 96 percent of grant savings calculations unverified, the audit reveals a precedent where unsubstantiated claims obscure actual government spending reductions. The recommendation to display these limitations directly affects how the public and legislators interpret the department's claimed $110 billion in savings.