Several high-ranking officials at the Department of Interior (DOI) were placed on administrative leave last week after refusing to grant unprecedented system access to representatives of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
The officials, including the department's chief information officer, information security officer, and a senior legal counsel, were removed after declining to immediately provide DOGE affiliates with extensive access to the Federal Personnel and Payroll System (FPPS). This system manages payroll and records for over 275,000 federal workers across dozens of agencies.
The DOGE representatives - Tyler Hassen, Stephanie Holmes, and Katrine Trampe - had requested "full" or "system" access to DOI's payroll, HR, and credentialing systems. According to internal sources, they specifically sought permissions to create, pause, and delete email accounts - capabilities that typically require multiple users for security purposes.
Career officials raised major concerns about these requests. No single DOI employee currently has such comprehensive access, as it could enable complete control over the system - from modifying code to accessing personal information or halting payments to federal workers. Officials also questioned whether DOGE representatives had proper authority to access these systems or implement their stated goals.
When pressed for details during a Thursday meeting about their specific needs, DOGE representatives reportedly declined to provide additional information, simply citing executive order authority and setting a Friday deadline for access approval.
Technical and legal staff drafted a risk assessment noting that such elevated access could make systems vulnerable to compromise by malicious actors. They determined that only Interior Secretary Doug Burgum had authority to grant such sweeping permissions given the inherent risks.
By Friday afternoon, the officials who raised these concerns were placed on leave pending workplace behavior investigations. Sources indicate DOGE received some level of FPPS access by Saturday, though the exact extent of permissions granted remains unclear.
A DOI spokesperson stated they are working to "execute the president's directive to cut costs and make the government more efficient for the American people."
One anonymous DOI source expressed worry about potential system damage or security breaches, stating the DOGE representatives "have no idea what they're doing."