WHEREAS, The Department of Government Efficiency was created by an Executive Order at the behest of the world’s richest man and has not been legislatively supported by Congress. Recent court filings by DOGE convey Elon Musk is not technically an Administrator of DOGE; instead, he is a Senior Adviser who is de facto controlling the organization; and
WHEREAS, DOGE has inflicted harm on the federal government, throwing thousands of civil servants’ work and livelihoods into disarray. It has pursued mass layoffs, stolen money from cities, and bypassed Congressional law to stop the functioning of multiple federal agencies; and
WHEREAS, DOGE, in its short existence, has routinely pushed lies and misinformation through Elon Musk’s media company and other mediums about federal spending and the purpose of federal programs to intentionally cast negative opinion about the importance of public agencies and investment; and
WHEREAS, Elon Musk’s companies, Tesla, X formerly known as Twitter, SpaceX, Solar City, and The Boeing Company, have received over $20 billion in public subsidies in the form of tax breaks, contracts, and other supports. None of which has been flagged by DOGE officials as a target for cuts; and
WHEREAS, DOGE has gained access to seven federal agencies data sets including access to every taxpayer’s IRS account and has been sued 11 times to prevent this access; and
WHEREAS, Philadelphia’s median income is $56,517, the maximum monthly TANF benefit in Pennsylvania is between $365 to $421, and Elon Musk receives $8 million a day in federal contracts. DOGE is an example of how billionaires use governmental institutions for oligarchic ends; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, THAT THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, Hereby condemns the unconstitutional actions taken by the Department of Government Efficiency to dismantle the federal government.
End