The Department of Government Efficiency’s eager scythe has swung across Texas as hundreds of IRS workers are expected to be laid off as part of Elon Musk and President Donald Trump’s desire to cut the government workforce. 

According to U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Austin, the total number of Internal Revenue Service layoffs in Texas now amounts to 600 workers. This is notable because, out of the 6,000 IRS workers laid off nationwide, Texas-based employees account for approximately 10%.

“Elon Musk’s DOGE is a sideshow in a multi-ring circus of deception—designed to create the illusion of billions in savings from waste, fraud, and abuse when DOGE itself is the abuse,” he told the American-Statesman. “Trump’s mass firing of thousands of IRS employees, including so far about 600 Texans, wasn’t done on merit to achieve efficiency but just applied with a meat axe without any consideration of job performance.”

Since Trump took office and launched his DOGE initiative, more than 200,000 federal employees in agencies such as the Energy Department, the U.S. Agency for International Development, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the IRS have been affected.

Additionally, 75,000 more federal workers have accepted buyouts that were offered weeks ago. The legality of both the layoffs and the buyouts remains unclear and will likely be a topic of contention in the coming months.

“More firings lie ahead as IRS workers have just been compelled to reply to the latest Musk email ultimatum. With tax season underway, refunds may be delayed as customer service disappears,” Doggett said. “But the real long-term damage is to America’s financial security by a President, who takes pride in his own tax avoidance and is determined to facilitate more of the same for his billionaire buddies by weakening enforcement and dismantling the IRS.”