The two Democrats have formally requested that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) audit the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security. They contend that while agencies possess the legal authority to serve subpoenas, the frequent inclusion of "boilerplate" secrecy demands lacks a statutory basis. In most instances, companies remain legally entitled to inform their customers of these incursions unless a judge has issued a time-limited nondisclosure order.
In section Newsroom
Lawmakers Seek Audit of Federal Agencies Over Subpoena Secrecy
Representative Pramila Jayapal and Senator Ron Wyden have accused the Trump administration of institutionalizing the abuse of subpoena power. The lawmakers argue that federal agencies are routinely coercing private companies into illegal silence regarding customer data requests, effectively bypassing First Amendment rights to notify targets of government surveillance.
Wyden and Jayapal highlighted a July 2025 incident where Harvard University received three immigration subpoenas from ICE containing secrecy demands. The Department of Homeland Security undermined its own request the following day by issuing a press release regarding the enforcement action. The lawmakers also pointed to the use of Homeland Security Investigations subpoenas to obtain six months of phone records belonging to journalist Georgia Fort, who was previously arrested while covering a protest. According to the letter sent to Chief Justice John Roberts and the GAO, these "extra-legal" gag requests exploit the power imbalance between federal law enforcement and corporate entities, forcing businesses to choose between compliance and regulatory scrutiny.
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