By Scott Patterson and Ken Thomas

WASHINGTON -- Elon Musk's controversial role at the White House is expected to diminish in the coming weeks, a change that risks undercutting his Department of Government Efficiency but isn't likely to stop its work outright.

DOGE has cut jobs at nearly every federal agency, canceled thousands of contracts and taken control of computer systems that run the government. As its leader, Musk has been a polarizing figure seen by many Republicans as an agent of cost cutting and efficiency and by Democrats as a blunt-force instrument hurting government services.

While Musk is the face of DOGE, most of its work has been done by dozens of computer programmers and lawyers who have fanned out across the federal government. Those staffers, which Musk has said tops 100, are expected to remain.

They have largely taken control of the Office of Personnel Management, which helps manage the federal workforce. DOGE played a central role in the demolition of two major agencies, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the U.S. Agency for International Development. The moves against both have been challenged in court.

A number of DOGE officials have attained powerful positions in the government. Jeremy Lewin, who played a key role in dismantling USAID, has a senior position in the State Department. Tyler Hassen, an oil executive who worked for DOGE, has a top role at the Interior Department.

DOGE has a long way to go to meet Musk's ambitious budget-cutting goals. The loss of its most high-profile advocate risks making its gargantuan task even harder. Musk has said he plans to slash $1 trillion from the federal budget, down from the $2 trillion he claimed on the campaign trail. A Wall Street Journal analysis found that federal spending since President Trump took office is higher than it was a year ago.

"The effort loses a lot of energy that Elon Musk's involvement brought to DOGE," said Romina Boccia, director of budget and entitlement policy at the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank. Boccia said that while DOGE has generated excitement among many Trump supporters, "They've made a lot of mistakes that have been very public."

Musk said on Tesla's earnings call Tuesday that "starting probably next month, May, my time allocation to DOGE will drop significantly." He added that he would continue to work for DOGE "as long as the president would like me to."

Nonetheless, the Jan. 20 executive order that established DOGE created a structure that should outlast Musk's tenure. It stipulates that government agencies will host a DOGE team consisting of a team leader, an engineer, a human-resources specialist and a lawyer. The department was given a lifespan set to terminate July 4, 2026.

As Musk prepares to step aside, DOGE's work is likely to shift from job cutting to regulation cutting, according to a Feb. 19 executive order that instructed agency leaders to begin rescinding "unlawful regulations" in coordination with DOGE.

Agencies must report regulations they deem unconstitutional and that impose "significant costs upon private parties" that aren't outweighed by public benefits, among other things. Agencies were also told to "deprioritize" enforcement of regulations "based on anything other than the best reading of a statute."

It couldn't be determined who, if anyone, would succeed Musk at DOGE's helm. While Amy Gleason, a former official with the U.S. Digital Service, the agency DOGE replaced, is its acting administrator, she doesn't appear to have an active role in running the government-efficiency group.

One option is Steve Davis, a longtime Musk lieutenant at SpaceX and other Musk companies who has taken a prominent role at DOGE. But Davis has worked alongside Musk for decades and might follow Musk back to the private sector.

DOGE will likely continue to take cues from Russell Vought, a longtime budget hawk and co-author of the conservative Project 2025 who runs the Office of Management and Budget, which acts as the budgetary and regulatory nerve center for the executive branch. Musk and Vought have worked closely to slash the federal workforce and restructure agencies, and Trump's executive orders direct DOGE to work closely with OMB officials.

Vought and his team at OMB "have a tremendous amount of experience in both the substance of federal policy and the mechanics of how government works," said Paul Winfree, who served as deputy director of the White House Domestic Policy Council during Trump's first administration. "Pairing that depth of expertise with OMB's policy leverage and DOGE's technological tool kit could amplify the effectiveness of both OMB and DOGE."

A White House official pushed back on the notion that Musk would no longer have a major presence within the administration's DOGE effort, saying Musk and DOGE aren't going anywhere.

Democrats have called for Musk to step down, pointing to conflicts of interest between his companies, such as SpaceX and Tesla, and the agencies he is overhauling. In an April 9 letter to Trump, a group of House Democrats said Musk's official title as a so-called special government employee means he can only serve for 130 days. While that period could end by May 30, White House officials have signaled that a deadline for Musk's departure remains in flux based on the number of days and hours he has worked, according to people familiar with the discussions.

DOGE has become synonymous with the Tesla chief executive, making him a lightning rod for concerns about the administration's actions.

A recent CNBC poll found that 52% of respondents had a negative view of Musk. Tesla, Musk's electric-vehicle company, saw its net income plunge 71% in the first quarter owing in part to his polarizing role as the leader of DOGE.

Write to Scott Patterson at scott.patterson@wsj.com and Ken Thomas at ken.thomas@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 24, 2025 05:00 ET (09:00 GMT)

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