A former member of Elon Musk’s disbanded Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) team, who landed a new job in Donald Trump’s administration, has revived one of the agency’s most criticized policies.
Federal tech workers at the General Services Administration (GSA) have been told to account for their time every day or risk being disciplined, the Washington Sun reported. The order comes from Sam Corcos, a DOGE veteran who now leads GSA’s Technology Transformation Services office and also serves as the Treasury Department’s chief information officer.
According to the SUN report, in a message sent last Friday to more than 200 employees, Corcos said the daily emails would give leadership "a better view" of the office’s work. “The purpose of these updates is to help us better understand what everyone is working on, give TTS Front Office a clearer picture of progress across the organization, and identify any blockers,” he reportedly wrote, before adding a warning: “Failure to comply may result in adverse action.”
"Employees are to send in a summary of the work they did that day, what they plan to do tomorrow and any issues they need help with by 6 p.m (in their respective time zones). The requirement began Monday," the Sun reported.
For many federal workers, it’s déjà vu. Last year, Musk ordered employees across the government to send weekly lists of "five things they had accomplished," a demand widely criticized as intimidation. The White House scrapped it in August.
Inside GSA, some employees are wary. One told the Sun the new rule shows Corcos’ “basic distrust in and underestimation of Federal workers.” Another questioned whether the emails were really about solving problems.
“It feels like they’re trying to mess with our heads again,” the worker said.
Corcos assigned Justin Adelman to sort through the issues employees raise, calling him an “experienced engineer” with a background that includes the IRS mobile app and “super intelligence efforts across Treasury.” The report notes Adelman’s LinkedIn profile, however, shows he graduated from college in 2023 and joined the government this summer through U.S. Tech Force, the administration’s program for early-career technologists. He is set to complete a master’s at Georgia Tech next month.