No, the Department of Government Efficiency is not a new government agency

Following his victory in the 2024 presidential election, President-elect Donald Trump has announced a number of nominations for his presidential cabinet and other advisers. 

On Nov. 12, Trump announced that Elon Musk and former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy would head the Department of Government Efficiency, which is not an existing federal agency.

The announcement confused some people who wondered if Trump could create a new federal agency and if Musk and Ramaswamy would be employees of the federal government in their new roles.

Is Trump creating a new government agency led by Musk and Ramaswamy?

No, Trump is not creating a new government agency led by Musk and Ramaswamy.

Trump’s new Department of Government Efficiency will not be a new federal agency. Instead, it is a way for Musk and Ramaswamy to serve in advisory roles to the president without holding official government positions.

“To drive this kind of drastic change, the Department of Government Efficiency will provide advice and guidance from outside of government, and will partner with the White House and the Office of Management & Budget to drive large scale structural reform, and create an entrepreneurial approach to government never seen before,” Trump wrote in a statement posted to X.

As a result, neither Musk nor Ramaswamy will be working as federal employees for the role.

The goal of the department, which Trump referred to as “DOGE” in reference to a meme and cryptocurrency favored by Musk, is to “dismantle government bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure federal agencies.”

If Trump wanted to make a new federal executive department, he would have to go through Congress first. The U.S. Constitution gives Congress the power to establish federal offices, and all eight executive departments established after WWII were created by legislation passed by Congress, usually after a request from the president, according to a report from the Congressional Research Service.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the most recently established federal agency. It was created as part of the Homeland Security Act of 2002.

Although Musk and Ramaswamy will remain outside of the government, Trump could create new roles within the Executive Office of the President and appoint people to those roles. The White House Press Secretary and the National Security Council are examples of positions in the Executive Office of the President, which the White House describes as the home to many of the president’s closest advisers.

Some of the advisory roles in this office were created by Congress, while others were created by presidents over the years. Senate confirmation is required for some roles in the Executive Office of the President, such as the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, but most are appointed at the president’s discretion, the White House says.