A federal judge temporarily blocked the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from accessing Department of Education records.
The temporary restraining order, issued by Judge Deborah Boardman, blocks DOGE from accessing federal student loan data information.
“It may be that, with additional time, the government can explain why granting such broad access to the plaintiffs’ personal information is necessary for DOGE affiliates at Education to do their jobs, but for now, the record before the Court indicates they do not have a need for these records in the performance of their duties,” Boardman wrote.
“The plaintiffs have made a clear showing that they are likely to suffer irreparable harm without injunctive relief,” the ruling said. “DOGE affiliates have been granted access to systems of record that contain some of the plaintiffs’ most sensitive data—Social Security numbers, dates of birth, home addresses, income and assets, citizenship status, and disability status—and their access to this trove of personal information is ongoing.”
“This continuing, unauthorized disclosure of the plaintiffs’ sensitive personal information to DOGE affiliates is irreparable harm that money damages cannot rectify,” the judge noted in the decision.
Boardman has also issued a block on President Donald Trump’s order ending birthright citizenship. She argued, “Today, virtually every baby born on U.S. soil is a U.S. citizen upon birth. That is the law and tradition of our country. That law and tradition are and will remain the status quo pending the resolution of this case.”
Boardman was the second judge to block the order.
