A coalition representing various labor unions initiated legal action on Monday, aiming to prevent Elon Musk’s team from gaining access to confidential information stored within the Education Department, Treasury Department, and the Office of Personnel Management.
The lawsuit, spearheaded by the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), claims that the Trump administration breached federal privacy regulations by granting Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency access to systems containing personal data on millions of individuals without obtaining their consent. This legal action was filed in a federal court located in Maryland.
This lawsuit represents one of several recent legal obstacles targeting Musk’s increasing involvement with federal agencies, which he intends to either diminish or disband. Just days prior, a federal judge in New York issued a ruling that barred Musk’s team from accessing certain systems within the Treasury Department following a lawsuit filed by 19 Democratic attorneys general, which cited concerns related to privacy.
In a separate development on the same day, the Education Department reportedly canceled around $900 million worth of contracts, classifying them as undesirable expenditure of taxpayer resources. According to a spokesperson, the cuts affected 90 contracts with the Institute of Education Sciences, a research division under the federal agency, with no further details provided immediately.
The department has assured that these cuts will not impact essential operations at the Institute of Education Sciences (IES), which includes key assessments such as the NAEP exam—widely recognized as the nation’s report card—as well as the College Scorecard, a platform that offers insights regarding tuition costs and student outcomes at U.S. colleges.
The AFT lawsuit highlights potential risks to personal data that have been shared with Musk’s team, particularly identifying an Education Department system that maintains information on over 40 million Americans who hold federal student loans. This database holds sensitive information, including Social Security numbers, driver’s license details, and home addresses.
Randi Weingarten, president of the AFT, emphasized the severity of the situation, stating, “The Department is effectively one of America’s biggest banks — if there was a breach of this magnitude in the private sector, it would rightly be a national scandal.”
The lawsuit accuses the former administration of unlawfully sharing sensitive data for unintended purposes, allegedly breaching the stipulations of the Privacy Act. It asserts that instead of fulfilling the responsibilities linked to the federal student loan system, Musk’s department has been utilizing loan data “to dismantle” the Education Department.
Former President Donald Trump has previously expressed intentions to eliminate the Education Department, proposing to delegate its powers to state authorities and educational institutions. Recently, Musk stated on his social media platform that the department “doesn’t exist,” in response to Democrats attempting to gain entry to the agency’s headquarters but being denied by security.
In its quest for relief, the lawsuit seeks a court order to prevent Musk’s access not only to Education data but also to the Treasury’s systems and the OPM database containing sensitive information about 2.3 million federal employees. Additionally, it calls for the destruction of any records that have already been improperly disclosed.
The legal filing articulates concerns that unauthorized access to sensitive government records has resulted in a significant breach, risking the integrity and safety of personal data for Americans nationwide.
The AFT, one of the largest teachers’ unions in the country, represents approximately 1.8 million individuals working in education, healthcare, and government sectors. The lawsuit is also supported by six individuals whose sensitive data is housed in federal systems, including military veterans who have received federal student loans and other benefits.
In a related matter, a different lawsuit initiated by the University of California Student Association is asking a federal judge in Washington to restrict Musk’s access to Education Department systems. Plaintiffs in this case have filed for an emergency restraining order seeking to prevent the Department of Government Efficiency from handling sensitive data.
