Certain companies are beginning to experience the repercussions of cost reduction strategies implemented by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), as initial public data indicates that numerous government consultants are encountering hundreds of millions of dollars in terminated or renegotiated contracts.
Among them are well-known firms like Deloitte. According to DOGE, the contracts that have been terminated for this London-based multinational firm amount to over $219 million in savings for taxpayers.
The impact on Deloitte’s financial performance remains unclear, but it is a relatively minor factor compared to Deloitte Worldwide’s reported revenue of $67.2 billion for 2024.
Other development and consulting firms—many of which are smaller entities focused primarily on US government contracts in the Washington area—could face much deeper relative cuts.
A recent lawsuit filed by a collective of these companies — Global Health Council v. Donald J. Trump — alleges that the administration’s decisions have caused “enormous and concrete harm to their businesses” both now and in the future.
At least one plaintiff claimed that the White House and DOGE’s actions have led to “months of unpaid invoices” for work that has already been completed.
An official from one of the firms informed Yahoo Finance that 20 contracts were terminated recently and stated that “the immediate issue is the federal government’s failure to pay for work it commissioned and approved — that’s fundamentally unfair.”
Another—arguably more prominent—group of companies is also encountering cuts, albeit on a much smaller scale: media outlets. These organizations are now receiving fewer subscriptions from the government after a wave of cancellations.
According to a Yahoo Finance analysis, these savings are slightly over $13 million in potential lost revenue, representing only about 0.18% of the total claimed DOGE savings to date.
The ultimate effect on these companies—and the actual savings for taxpayers—remains unclear, as DOGE has repeatedly reduced its claimed savings in recent days following the identification of errors. The specific terms of contracts are also not publicly known.
What stands out is that much of the initial focus has been on consulting and development companies like Deloitte, DAI Global, and International Development Group.
In a notable case—the largest cut attributed to Musk’s team—taxpayers are said to have saved $654,990,000 by terminating a contract with International Development Group Advisory Services.
However, the website of the firm at the center of the contract notes only $25 million in ongoing projects.
While the specifics of that particular contract are not disclosed, it is noted in the DOGE records as an indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract, typically utilized by the government to outline future work parameters without fully committing to the entire amount.
Elon Musk appeared at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on February 20 in Maryland, wielding a chainsaw presented to him by Argentinian President Javier Milei. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images) ·Andrew Harnik via Getty Images
DOGE’s emphasis on development and consulting firms—often categorized in government data as “professional support”—also reflects Musk’s initial focus on the US Agency for International Development (USAID). A significant portion of the canceled contracts involved work for this agency in remote locations such as the Middle East and Africa.
In total, Musk’s team claims to have achieved around $7.2 billion in savings from canceled or renegotiated contracts, with USAID accounting for approximately $5.2 billion of that figure.
The lawsuit in Global Health Council v. Donald J. Trump also asserts that the administration’s actions “have had and will continue to have a catastrophic effect on the humanitarian missions of several plaintiffs.”
Despite the focus on consultants and professional support firms, media organizations have garnered significant public attention from the Trump White House.
Press secretary Karoline Leavitt emphasized the administration’s plans to cancel these payments earlier this month, notably targeting Washington-centric Politico, which offers specialized coverage of government agencies and energy policies.
The government has reportedly canceled at least 90 subscriptions to Politico across various departments, resulting in approximately $8.5 million in savings according to DOGE data.
Leavitt has also asserted that these subscriptions — which seem to be the norm — effectively equate to “subsidizing subscriptions to Politico at the expense of American taxpayers” and has pointed out that “this will no longer occur.”
While Politico is likely to experience setbacks, the government is not truly subsidizing an outlet that was sold for $1 billion in 2021; at that time, it was reported that Politico generated $200 million annually in revenue.
Another major media recipient of government subscriptions is Bloomberg, which has lost over $2 million in subscriptions. However, this is expected to be an even smaller impact on Bloomberg’s bottom line, which reportedly surpassed $10 billion in annual revenue in 2019.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt displaying a copy of government contract receipts during a press briefing on February 12. (ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS via Getty Images) ·ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS via Getty Images
Certainly, DOGE is still at the outset of its efforts to navigate the federal bureaucracy and has reportedly impacted about 10% of government agencies designated so far.
The companies affected are expected to change in the coming weeks as Musk and the DOGE team focus on other sectors, particularly the $850 billion Department of Defense. Both DOGE and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth are exploring potential cuts.
William Blair industrials research analyst Louie DiPalma remarked during a recent Yahoo Finance live appearance that there are various forces in Washington pushing to increase defense spending, making potential impacts in that area uncertain.
“There seems to be strong support for continuing to increase the defense budget,” he noted.
DOGE claims a total of $55 billion in savings through various methods, including fraud detection and workforce reductions, but has yet to offer a comprehensive account of those changes.
Ben Werschkul is a Washington correspondent for Yahoo Finance.
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