COLORADO, USA — A “Wall of Receipts” created by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) claims to have saved over a million dollars in Colorado through cancelled contracts and lease terminations, but verifying these savings has proven difficult due to inconsistencies.
The online repository includes hundreds of federal contracts and real estate transactions that were allegedly cut or terminated. However, the website is difficult to navigate, and several claimed savings have been challenged or removed from the list, according to recent reports.
One example of confusion is National Jewish Health in Denver. According to Politico, DOGE has cancelled a contract with the hospital to conduct lung disease research.
When asked by Politico and 9NEWS, National Jewish said they had “not been informed of any cuts or cancellations of contracts related to the COPDGene research project.” DOGE has since removed that contract from its list of terminated agreements.
Major news outlets, such as The Associated Press and The New York Times, have reported discrepancies between the “Wall of Receipts” and actual savings.
The Times reported that DOGE has “quietly walked back its largest claims of cost savings,” while the Associated Press discovered that nearly 40% of the cancelled contracts will result in no savings at all.
DOGE claims to have cancelled nearly 4,000 square feet of office space in Boulder that was leased to the US Geological Survey for nearly $50,000 per year.
The University of Colorado Boulder, which owns the building, confirmed receiving notice from the General Services Administration on Tuesday that the lease would expire in late August, but it is unclear where displaced employees will relocate.
The small town of Craig in Northwest Colorado appears to face significant impacts as well. DOGE reported cancelling a five-year lease for the Mine Safety Health Administration, with claimed savings approaching one million dollars.
Attempts to verify this information with Craig’s mayor, city council members, and the Mine Safety Health Administration went unanswered.
In Grand Junction, DOGE states that termination procedures are “still being finalized” for the lease of a building housing the Social Security Administration. The department claims the lease costs more than $270,000 annually, though property records could not verify this figure.
As DOGE continues to post “receipts” of its efficiency efforts, questions remain about the accuracy of the claimed savings and the human impact of these federal cuts across Colorado communities.
