DOGE Scraper

Reporting Recipe

The DOGE receipt scraper project maintains a set of data tables tracking changes made to the “savings” website hosted by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), formerly known as the United States Digital Service. Sunlight Research Center researcher and data specialist Michael Nolan wrote this script to support their data reporting work at the Minneapolis-based publication MinnPost by tracking DOGE’s reported funding cuts and how they impacted the people of Minnesota. The scraper code is written in python and can be found at the following github repository: https://github.com/m-nolan/doge-scrape

The scraper tracks changes made to the data tables on DOGE’s website — added items, removed items, and changed items — and saves them in more accessible and analyzable CSV files. Archives of six CSV files are maintained, two for each table: contracts, grants, and leases. The first table copy is the most recent table displayed on the DOGE website. The second table copy contains all unique entries that have ever been present in the DOGE website tables since the scraper started tracking them. If a row was entered and changed in one of the tables, the second CSV file will have rows for the original entry and updated value for that given contract, grant, or lease.

Copies of the data tables are currently stored in a repository on Big Local News and can be accessed with a free MuckRock account.

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Articles reported using this data:

updated as of May 2025

• From DOGE cuts to tariffs, see Trump's first 100 days by the numbers

  • https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/national-international/doge-cuts-tariffs-and-immigration-crackdown-trumps-first-100-days-by-the-numbers/4171722/

  • NBC10 Philadelphia

  • 2025-04-29

• Evanston woman says her contract is among DOGE website errors

  • https://www.nbcchicago.com/investigations/evanston-woman-says-her-contract-is-among-doge-website-errors/3691899/

  • NBC Chicago

  • 2025-03-07

• DOGE claims at least $117 million in Bay Area contract cuts, spurring layoffs and uncertainty

  • https://www.nbcbayarea.com/investigations/doge-claims-millions-bay-area-contract-cuts/3864516/

  • NBC Bay Area

  • 2025-05-08

• 'We got un-DOGE'd': Inaccurate info discovered in claimed taxpayer savings

  • https://www.nbcboston.com/news/local/we-got-un-doged-inaccurate-info-discovered-in-claimed-taxpayer-savings/3658923/

  • NBC Boston

  • 2025-03-14

• DEI, Project 2025 and the Constitution: Tracking Trump's impact in his first 100 days

  • https://www.nbcwashington.com/investigations/dei-project-2025-and-the-constitution-tracking-trumps-impact-in-his-first-100-days/3903435/

  • NBC4 Washington

  • 2025-04-30

• EV uncertainty: How Trump's charging station funding freeze in affecting the DC area

  • https://www.nbcwashington.com/investigations/ev-uncertainty-how-trumps-charging-station-funding-freeze-is-affecting-the-dc-area/3914753/

  • NBC4 Washington

  • 2025-05-15

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Questions about how to create something like this yourself? Contact Michael Nolan at michael@sunlightresearch.net.

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Questions or comments about Sunlight's workshops and resources? Contact Elizabeth at elizabeth@sunlightsearch.net