Frank Bisignano
Only recently appointed to the head of the Social Security Administration (SSA), Frank Bisignano has admitted to some back-channel coordination the DOGE-affiliated CIO Mike Russo, but he denies that he secretly gave direction to the DOGE team before his nomination was confirmed.
Positions
| Position | Notes |
|---|---|
| SSA |
Source
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| IRS |
Source
IRS
10/06/25
Chief Executive Officer
«Technically, position doesn’t exist and Scott Bessent is acting commissioner, but will be in charge.»
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Events
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
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2/10/25
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Source
Official
According to the testimony of a whistleblower, the nominatee for agency director, Frank Bisignano, orders through back channels that agency leadership must onboard Mark Steffensen as an attorney at the SSA. He reportedly had coerced senior SSA leadership to not hire anybody into roles without his explicit approval.
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3/26/25
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Source
Disruption
During his confirmation hearing, Frank Bisignano, the nominee to run the agency, confirms that he had coordinated with Michael Russo but denied a whistleblower report that he had ordered the appointment of other DOGE staff there.
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5/06/25
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Source
Official
Frank Bisignano is confirmed by the Senate to be the new Commissioner of the Social Security Administration, replacing Leland Dudek who was serving as the acting commissioner.
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c.6/05/25
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Source
Report
Frank Bisignano is granted permission to remove any DOGE staff at his agency. According to the report, “Bisignano parted ways with one DOGE staffer from SSA, who in June moved to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.” The date and person isn’t named, but the CIO replacement at SSA and NASA connection suggest it’s Scott Coulter who was removed in early June.
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9/03/25
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Source
Official
Commissioner Frank Bisignano issues a press release announcing the new leadership structure for the Social Security Administration. This officially confirms the reports that DOGE members Aram Moghaddassi and Mike Russo had effectively been acting as co-CIOs, with Mr. Moghaddassi named to the title of Chief Information Officer (Technology and Customer Products) and Mr. Russo to Chief Information Officer (Core Business Functions)
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9/16/25
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Source
Oversight
SSA Commissioner Frank Bisignano replies to the letter from the Senate Finance Committee about the allegations of the whistleblower. He claims that all proper procedures were followed and that DOGE did not transfer data to a private cloud within the SSA Amazon Web Services accounts.
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9/24/25
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Source
Report
The New York Times reports on how the DOGE-led staffing cuts and technology changes have led to poor service, low morale and increased wait times for the public. In many field offices, the average wait for an appointment is now six weeks.
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10/06/25
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Source
Onboard
The Trump Administration names Frank Bisignano, the current administrator of SSA, as the Chief Executive Officer of the IRS, a position which does not actually exist. Technically, Scott Bessent will remain the seventh acting commissioner to run the IRS this year, but this new role seems to be a way to give Frank Bisignano direct authority over decision-making at the agency while also preserving some amount of deniability and allowing the Trump admininistration to once again sidestep the Senate confirmation process.
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1/20/26
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Source
Disruption
Acting IRS CEO Frank Bisignano announces a major shake-up for leadership at the IRS, which had already been struggling with vacancies after DOGE-driven reductions last year. Bisignano has announced he will be co-leading tax compliance at the agency. He also promoted DOGE team lead Tom Newnam to the role of Chief Financial Officer, giving him oversight over procurement, facilities and privacy at the agency.
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