Not from the Onion, but rather from the Daily Signal, mouthpiece of the Heritage Foundation:
The Treasury Department under President Joe Biden has refused to hand over documents showing how officials decided to alter the definition of a recession after the first two quarters of 2022 saw declines in gross domestic product, the traditional definition of a recession.
The Heritage Foundation filed a Freedom of Information Act request on July 6, asking Treasury for internal communications containing the terms “recession,” “alternative definition of recession,” and “alternative recession measurements.” (The Daily Signal is The Heritage Foundation’s news outlet.)
Here’s the lawsuit cover page.
Link.
I suppose it’s interesting to know what Treasury thinks signals a recession, but as a basis for a lawsuit, I think it’s a pretty silly.
I’ve never worked at Treasury, but I talked to plenty Treasury economists while at CEA, and I’m pretty sure the economists there are aware that the NBER is the most official arbiter of recessions in the US. Just sayin’.