Yes, the US government really processes retirement paperwork in an underground mine

LOS ANGELES - Elon Musk made headlines Tuesday for calling attention to an unusual federal operation—an underground limestone mine where the government processes retirement applications entirely by hand.

Speaking from the Oval Office, Musk referenced the Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) Retirement Operations Center in Boyers, Pennsylvania, where federal employees sort, file, and process retirement claims manually, using paper records stored in manila envelopes and cardboard boxes.

"All the retirement paperwork is manual, on paper," Musk said. "It's like a time warp… Doesn’t that sound crazy?"

Musk’s comments came as President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing agencies to cut back on government hiring and modernize outdated operations.

A decades-old system with little progress

The backstory:

The Boyers facility, located 230 feet underground, has been used by the government for storage and record-keeping since the 1960s. The OPM Retirement Operations Center, which has operated there since the 1970s, processes more than 10,000 retirement applications every month—all by hand.

This isn’t the first time the system has drawn scrutiny. A 2014 investigation by The Washington Post described the mine as a ‘sinkhole of bureaucracy’, revealing that retirement applications were still being processed the same way they had been for decades, despite multiple modernization attempts.

The article highlighted that paper files are physically transported to the mine daily in trucks, where workers manually review, calculate, and approve benefits before sending paperwork back to Washington. The report also detailed failed government efforts to digitize the process, with at least $100 million spent on automation attempts that never succeeded.

In the ten years since that report, little has changed. As of 2025, applications are still processed on paper, and OPM continues to face processing backlogs, staffing shortages, and outdated workflows.

How the system works

Dig deeper:

Despite its inefficiencies, the Boyers facility remains a critical hub for federal retirement applications. The process follows several steps:

• Federal employees submit retirement applications on paper, which are mailed or hand-delivered to the OPM.
• Paper files are transported to the underground mine, where employees manually review them for completeness.
• Staff members pass files by hand from cavern to cavern, checking calculations and verifying benefits.
• Errors and missing information slow down processing, often requiring documents to be sent back to agencies for corrections.
• Approved claims are manually entered into the system before final benefits are processed.

A 2019 GAO report found that OPM failed to meet its goal of processing most retirement applications within 60 days between 2014 and 2017, citing three key reasons:

• Continued reliance on paper-based applications and manual processing.
• Insufficient staffing, particularly during peak seasons.
• Frequent errors in applications that required additional verification.

Failed efforts to modernize the system

Big picture view:

Since the 1980s, multiple administrations have attempted to automate OPM’s retirement processing, but none have succeeded.

According to the GAO, the government has spent over $100 million since the late 1980s on failed modernization projects. A 2023 Inspector General report found that while OPM had taken small steps toward digitization—such as testing an online retirement application pilot in 2024—a full modernization plan remains years away.

The Boyers mine, originally used for limestone excavation, was never intended to serve as a long-term government office, yet it continues to house hundreds of workers processing applications by hand.

Why Musk and Trump are calling for change

What's next:

Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has been tasked with identifying wasteful government practices. He singled out the Boyers facility as an example of outdated inefficiency, arguing that automation could reduce backlogs and free up government workers for other roles.

Elon Musk speaks in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on February 11, 2025.  (Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)

"The elevator breaks down sometimes, and nobody can retire," Musk joked. "Instead of working in a mine shaft, carrying manila envelopes, you can do practically anything else and add more value to the economy."

A key part of Trump's new executive order requires agencies to reduce their workforce and improve operational efficiency. That includes a directive that agencies hire only one new employee for every four who leave—a move Musk and others claim will force a reassessment of outdated processes.