The Government Accountability Office reported on August 6, 2026 that the Department of Government Efficiency's Wall of Receipts claimed $110 billion in savings across contracts, grants, and leases as of July 7, 2026, but that "some savings estimates are incorrect or lack supporting evidence," per report GAO-26-108615. The audit covers postings from February 17, 2025 through July 7, 2026.
What did GAO find?
GAO's central finding is methodological: the savings arithmetic cannot be checked from what the site publishes. "DOGE was not transparent regarding methodologies used to calculate savings," the report states, noting DOGE "did not use its stated methodology to calculate the majority of savings associated with the contracts reported as terminated," and "did not provide sufficient information to verify the method used to calculate 96 percent of DOGE-reported savings" on grants, per the GAO report page. On leases, the report found the Wall of Receipts overstated savings from terminations by more than $80 million.
Some claims were attributed to actions that predate the office or never occurred. Of 264 leases listed for termination, 108 — about $15.3 million of the claimed $53.5 million — had already been slated for termination before DOGE existed, the report states. The recommendation that followed is directed at transparency rather than accounting: GAO recommended that the U.S. DOGE Service prominently display known data quality issues and limitations on the site.
What did GAO recommend, and what happens now?
One recommendation, one addressee. GAO's finding that the Wall of Receipts "does not provide sufficient information on data quality issues or limitations" produced a recommendation to the Executive Office of the President, via the U.S. DOGE Service, to display the site's known limitations prominently. The recommendation remains open as of the report's release, which means the audited party has not yet documented the action. Open recommendations of this kind routinely become questions at subsequent oversight hearings, where agencies report completion or explain the delay.
The audit's scope bounds what it can say. GAO reviewed savings data posted from February 17, 2025, when posting began, through July 7, 2026, and checked contract claims against federal procurement records and grant claims against federal spending databases. Findings about methodology and verification apply to that window; the report does not forecast totals beyond it, and the full site continued to change after the review closed.
Why does a Pentagon contract anchor the audit?
The Defense Department example is the report's most concrete case. In coverage of the findings, Federal News Network reported on August 7, 2026 that "The Department of Government Efficiency touted that it saved $110 billion across federal contracts, grants and leases," and that "96% of DOGE's claimed savings on federal grants cannot be verified," with some posted savings "already being phased out before DOGE was established," per the Federal News Network report. GAO's own review tracked savings data against federal procurement and spending databases.
The report does not conclude that no savings occurred. What GAO concluded is that the public record, as posted, does not support the posted figures — a distinction that matters for Congress as it weighs the office's legacy and for agencies inheriting the contracts in question. The recommendation to the Executive Office of the President remains open as of the report's release.
