'Serious privacy concerns': Trump admin violating FOIA by refusing to release documents in wake of data-sharing directives, watchdog says

The Trump administration is violating the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) by refusing to merchandise records connected however national agencies stock and usage delicate idiosyncratic information via systems built by Palantir, according to a transparency-focused watchdog group.

In an 11-page complaint filed Tuesday, American Oversight accuses myriad administrative agencies of repeatedly violating FOIA laws by failing to merchandise requested accusation astir the national government's usage of tools developed by and agreements with the controversial, surveillance-focused exertion company.

The suit comes amid a reported uptick successful the usage of Palantir tools successful migration enforcement and expanded data-sharing crossed agencies, according to the watchdog group.

"Americans merit to cognize however their astir delicate idiosyncratic information is being collected and utilized by their ain government," American Oversight Executive Director Chioma Chukwu said successful a statement. "Systems similar this rise superior privateness concerns due to the fact that they let the compilation and investigation of immense amounts of information, with small nationalist transparency. That benignant of centralized authorities information power, without accusation astir however the information is being utilized and whether it is being decently protected, is simply a reddish flag."

The suit links the summation successful data-sharing to a March 2025 enforcement order issued by President Donald Trump.

"Agency Heads shall, to the maximum grade accordant with law, rescind oregon modify each bureau guidance that serves arsenic a obstruction to the inter- oregon intra-agency sharing of unclassified information," 1 conception of the enforcement bid reads.

The plaintiffs accidental the data-sharing directives successful the bid "significantly expanded the government's concern engagement with Palantir."

The suit raises concerns astir corruption, noting the steadfast was "cofounded by Trump state Peter Thiel and led by Alex Karp, who donated $1 million" to the pro-Trump Super PAC, MAGA Inc.

"Since the opening of Trump's 2nd term, Palantir has secured national contracts exceeding hundreds of millions of dollars for a assortment of services, including artificial quality and information analysis, with aggregate national agencies—including Defendants," the suit reads. "[P]rivacy advocates, lawmakers, and others person voiced concerns astir the imaginable operation of a authorities surveillance authorities and maltreatment of the tools and services created by Palantir that usage Americans' delicate data."

American Oversight aims to get "[a]ll email communications" betwixt definite bureau officials discussing Palantir and betwixt the company's representatives and those aforesaid authorities officials, according to the lawsuit.

The filing contains a laundry database of dozens of specified names and titles affiliated with the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Internal Revenue Service, and the Social Security Administration. The suit besides lists respective Palantir-related names and programs.

The plaintiffs spell connected to petition a "complete transcript (including each attachments) of each contracts oregon subcontracts, agreements, memoranda of understanding, oregon different written agreements between" each named bureau and Palantir, each of the "records governing the entree of personally identifiable oregon delicate accusation oregon data" from each named agency, and each "formal oregon informal last directives" oregon different "guidance, protocol, oregon policies created by oregon different issued to your bureau related to information sharing with Palantir."

The suit besides seeks each "informational handouts, summary documents, handwritten oregon typed notes, oregon immoderate different records."

To that end, passim past summer, the nonprofit submitted the aforesaid FOIA petition to each of the agencies "among different agencies" and has, to date, received lone 1 "interim response" from the IRS.

That interim effect was admittedly lengthy, and included "619 pages of records responsive to portion 3 of the request," according to the lawsuit. The plaintiffs said the IRS advised that the bureau would present the applicable pages "with redactions." But the interim effect has go the lone substantive response, the plaintiffs say.

From the complaint, astatine length:

IRS's February 26, 2026 missive further stated that it would "continue processing the remainder of [the] petition and supply [Plaintiff's] entreaty rights successful [IRS's] last response." Apart from a duplicate accumulation connected April 8, 2026, Plaintiff has received nary further connection from IRS regarding this request, nor has IRS produced each records responsive to the petition successful the signifier of a last effect arsenic of the clip of this filing.

As for the different agencies, however, the plaintiffs accidental they person received a bare-bones acknowledgment that the FOIA requests were filed but – speech from discussions astir interest waivers and deadline extensions – person mostly "received nary further communication."

Such a paucity of responsive action, the suit alleges, doubly violates the nation's premier national transparency law.

The suit is premised connected 2 causes of enactment — an alleged nonaccomplishment to behaviour capable searches for responsive records and the alleged wrongful withholding of non-exempt responsive records.

The plaintiffs privation a tribunal bid directing the agencies to behaviour "a hunt oregon searches reasonably calculated" to uncover the records responsive to their FOIA requests and to nutrient specified records wrong 20 days of specified a would-be tribunal bid — oregon to supply a withholding excuse by a day the justice "deems appropriate."

The suit besides seeks an injunction barring the authorities from withholding immoderate specified responsive records – and attorneys' fees.

"When the authorities builds immense systems similar this successful secret, the nationalist has nary mode of knowing however that powerfulness is being utilized oregon who it is being utilized against," Chukwu continued. "That's particularly alarming coming from an medication that has repeatedly shared Americans' information successful usurpation of the instrumentality and shown clip and again it is consenting to usage each instrumentality astatine its disposal to people its perceived enemies for retribution."