Republican governors promote DOGE’s cost-cutting
While governors have long considered lowering waste and bureaucracy, DOGE has pushed them to demonstrate their commitment to cost-saving and streamlining government operations.
The tumultuous early days of President Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency, previously headed by billionaire Elon Musk, triggered state-level DOGE imitations as Republican governors and lawmakers sought to align with their party’s leader. Governors have consistently capitalized on reducing waste and streamlining bureaucracy, but DOGE has, in certain respects, heightened the pressure for them to demonstrate a strong commitment to cost-cutting. Many emphasize their longstanding commitment to reducing government, even if they are not implementing widespread layoffs. “I like to say we were doing DOGE before DOGE was a thing,” Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds said in announcing her own task force in January.
Critics contend that many of these initiatives are not innovative and argue they are wasteful, effectively duplicating established processes typically handled by legislative committees or independent state auditors. Simultaneously, certain governors are leveraging their DOGE vehicles to target current GOP issues, including welfare programs and diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. Some governors considering a White House bid in 2028 are rebranding their cost-cutting initiatives as DOGE, possibly aiming to assert themselves as the most DOGE of them all.
According to the Economic Policy Institute in Washington, DC, at least 26 states have launched DOGE-style initiatives of various types. Most DOGE initiatives were executed via a governor’s order, involving governors from Florida, Iowa, Louisiana, Montana, New Hampshire, and Oklahoma, or through lawmakers proposing legislation or establishing a legislative committee. The state initiatives contrast sharply with Trump’s aggressive tactics, epitomized by Musk’s chainsaw-wielding presence at a Conservative Political Action Committee event in February. Governors are increasingly assigning their DOGE bureaus to loyalists instead of independent auditors. They are frequently engaging in lengthy processes to consolidate procurement, modernize information technology systems, introduce AI tools, repeal regulations, or reduce car fleets, office leases, and worker headcounts through attrition.
Analysts at the Economic Policy Institute, which supports labor, assert that governors and lawmakers, mainly in the South and Midwest, are leveraging DOGE to reinvigorate long-term strategies aimed at consolidating power away from state agencies and civil servants, dismantling public services, and benefiting insiders and advocates of privatization. “It’s not actually about cutting costs because of some fiscal responsibility,” EPI analyst Nina Mast said.
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry has rebranded his Fiscal Responsibility Program as Louisiana DOGE, promoting it as the first initiative to collaborate with the federal government in removing illegitimate enrollees from welfare programs. “It has already netted $70 million in savings in the Medicaid program in an unprecedented coordination,” Landry said in June.
In Oklahoma, Gov. Kevin Stitt states on the Oklahoma DOGE website, “I’ve been DOGE-ing in Oklahoma since before it was cool.” He made headlines with the first report from his Division of Government Efficiency, announcing that the state would decline approximately $157 million in federal public health grants. $132 million was allocated to enhance epidemiology and laboratory capacity for controlling infectious disease outbreaks. The Stitt administration stated that funding approximately one-third of the total over an eight-year period surpassed the required amount.
The Oklahoma Policy Institute, which leans left, raised concerns about this decision, highlighting the increasing cases of measles and whooping cough, as well as the challenging transition of the state’s public health lab from Oklahoma City to Stillwater under Stitt’s administration. Oklahoma Democrats criticized the state’s poor public health rankings. “This isn’t leadership,” state Sen. Carri Hicks said. “It’s negligence.” Stitt’s Oklahoma DOGE has recommended changes in federal law to save money, opened a suggestion box for state employees and the public, and posted a spreadsheet online detailing cost-saving initiatives in his administration. These include actions such as agencies transitioning to paperless operations, refinancing bonds, purchasing automated lawn mowers for the Capitol grounds, and removing a fax machine line in the State Board of Licensure for Professional Engineers and Surveyors.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed an executive order in February to establish a task force of DOGE teams across each state agency. DeSantis outlined 10 points highlighting his and Florida’s history of prudent fiscal management prior to DOGE. DeSantis pledged to examine expenditures by state universities and local governments, particularly regarding DEI initiatives, as he advocates for the elimination of property taxes that primarily support these local entities. His administration has issued letters to universities and governments requesting extensive information and has received approval from lawmakers, who passed legislation authorizing the inquiry and imposing fines on entities that fail to respond. Following the June 30 signing ceremony, DeSantis stated on social media: “We now have full authority to DOGE local governments.”
In Arkansas, Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders initiated her cost-cutting Arkansas Forward last year, prior to DOGE, and subsequently stated that the state had accomplished similar goals as DOGE. Her administration dedicated a significant portion of 2024 to compiling a 97-page report detailing hundreds of potential methods to save $300 million within a $6.5 billion budget. Achieving those savings primarily through the standardization of information technology and purchasing may necessitate initial expenditures and could take years to yield results.
