DOGE Deactivates 500,000 Federal Credit Cards Amid $40B Spending Audit

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Elon Musk speaks as US President Donald Trump looks on in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on February 11, 2025. Tech billionaire Elon Musk, who has been tapped by President Donald Trump to lead federal cost-cutting efforts, said the United States would go "bankrupt" without budget cuts. Musk leads the efforts under the newly created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), and was speaking at the White House with Trump, who has in recent weeks unleashed a flurry of orders aimed at slashing federal spending. (Photo by Jim WATSON / AFP) (Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)

The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) reported it had deactivated over 500,000 federal credit cards as part of a broad audit initiative.

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Back in February, DOGE revealed that these surplus cards had been responsible for 90 million transactions, totaling $40 billion in spending for the 2024 fiscal year. The General Services Administration (GSA) noted that the average amount per transaction on a federal card was $441.

Providing an update on the ongoing audit, DOGE stated that the review now spans across 32 federal agencies.

“As a reminder, at the start of the audit, there were ~4.6M active cards/accounts, so still more work to do,” the agency shared on X.

An accompanying chart indicated that 12 of those agencies have completed at least 90% of their audits, including the General Services Administration, the Department of Education, and the Social Security Administration.

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DOGE Director Elon Musk raised concerns in March over the nature of the card usage, suggesting the scale and limits were excessive.

“There are still almost twice as many credit/purchasing cards as people in the government, and the limits are $10,000!” Musk posted via X. “A lot of shady expenditures happening.”

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