President Donald Trump and adviser Elon Musk floated the idea of sending some the money that the Department of Government Efficiency saves directly back to taxpayers, but the checks aren’t in the mail yet.
On Thursday, White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller said the White House is considering how to divvy up the savings. Miller said 20% of the checks would go toward paying down the U.S. debt, which stands above $36.2 trillion.
Another 20% would go back to taxpayers. The remaining 60% would be added to next year’s budget, Miller said.
“You can transfer into the next fiscal window and then lower the overall spending level,” he told reporters Thursday during a White House news briefing. “That means you can achieve a permanent savings that way.”
Miller’s comments Thursday came after Trump said he was considering the idea Wednesday.
“We’re thinking about giving 20% back to the American citizens and 20% down to pay back debt,” Trump said.
The checks aren’t in the mail – at least not yet.
Miller said it would be worked on through the Congressional reconciliation process. The House is working on one spending bill and the Senate another.
“The president has great confidence in both chambers to deliver on his priorities,” Miller said.
DOGE said it has saved $55 billion so far, but has only posted about 20% of the contracts it said it has cancelled.
James Fishback, the co-founder of investment firm Azoria, came up with the idea on social media and got Musk’s attention. Musk said he’d check with the boss. Fishback proposed a “DOGE Dividend” or tax refund check with $400 billion that’s 20% of the targeted $2 trillion in DOGE savings. Fishback estimated that if the savings were divided among taxpaying households, it could result in $5,000 per household.
Miller and other White House officials said they couldn’t immediately say when the checks would be put in the mail.
DOGE has until July 4, 2026, to submit its final plan to Trump.
