Attorney General Dan Rayfield today released the below statement after an early morning victory in court. A federal judge in the Southern District of New York temporarily blocked Elon Musk and his “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE) from accessing Americans’ most sensitive personal information, pending further judicial proceedings. The judge ruled they must immediately destroy any and all copies of records they have already obtained.
This decision comes hours after a lawsuit was filed by a coalition of 19 states, including Oregon.
“The court’s ruling reaffirms the principle that no one – not a billionaire and not the president—are above the law. The actions of Elon Musk and his team represent a dangerous overreach that could have long-lasting consequences.”
“Our office was being flooded with phone calls, emails and social media messages from Oregonians who were upset about this enormous violation of their privacy. Musk and his employees gained unprecedented access to state bank account details, personal private data and more. People were afraid they would not only lose their privacy, but critical funding that they rely on.”
“We are grateful that U.S. District Judge Engelmayer swiftly took action in this case. Musk and his cronies will no longer have free access to Americans’ personal information as we take the next steps to make this permanent.”
Early this morning, U.S. District Judge Paul Engelmayer found that the states proved they were likely to succeed on their “particularly strong” statutory claims and would suffer irreparable harm without urgent court intervention.
Last week, the U.S. Department of the Treasury adopted a new policy that granted “special government employees,” including Elon Musk and DOGE staffers, access to its central payment system. This payment system contains Americans’ private personal data and controls vital funding that millions of Americans depend on, including Social Security payments, veterans’ benefits, Medicare and Medicaid payments, and more. The payment system also controls billions of dollars that states rely on to support essential services like law enforcement, public education, health care, and critical infrastructure.
The court will hear arguments on the coalition’s request for further injunctive relief on February 14th.
Joining Attorney General Rayfield in this lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wisconsin.
Additional Attachments:
ECF No. 6 – OSC-TRO – Signed