Q&A of the Day – Florida’s DOGE & Measuring Local Government Efficiency
Each day I feature a listener question sent by one of these methods.
Email: brianmudd@iheartmedia.com
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Today’s Entry: Brian- how is what DeSantis just announced different than Florida’s existing government efficiency task force? I remember you covering this last year.
Bottom Line: Good memory...and you’re right, Florida has had an existing government efficiency task force preceding the governor’s announcement on Monday and I did cover this in a two-part story last November entitled: How Efficient Are Florida’s Local Governments? As I mentioned at the time, the origins of Florida’s original version of DOGE dates back to 2006.
In 2006 Floridians voted in favor of Amendment 1 which created an ongoing government efficiency task force. The Task Force meets each fourth year and submits its recommendations to the chairperson and vice chairperson of the Legislative Budget Commission, the Governor, and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. Ironically, the existing task force next meets today. As for what the constitutionally mandated task force is tasked with doing:
- The task force shall convene no later than January 2007, and each 4th year thereafter. The task force shall be composed of 15 members. The task force shall be composed of members of the Legislature and representatives from the private and public sectors, as designated by the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the Governor.
- The task force shall elect a chair from among its members.
- The task force shall meet as necessary, but at least quarterly, at the call of the chair and at the time and place designated by him or her. The task force may conduct its meetings through teleconferences or other similar means.
- The task force shall develop recommendations for improving governmental operations and reducing costs. Staff to assist the task force in performing its duties shall be assigned by the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the Governor.
- The task force shall complete its work within 1 year and submit its recommendations to the chairperson and vice chairperson of the Legislative Budget Commission, the Governor, and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
Previous reports have produced ways to reduce billions in wasteful spending by state agencies through streamlining government. Many of those recommendations have been acted on.
Here’s what Governor DeSantis’s order has directed:
- The EO DOGE Team shall be responsible for (1) ensuring compliance with this Executive Order; (2) using publicly available information to identify and report unnecessary spending within county and municipal governments; (3) coordinating with the Board of Governors of the State University System of Florida and the State Board of Education to identify and eliminate unnecessary spending, programs, courses, staff, and any other inefficiencies within the State University System and the Florida College System; and (4) recommending legislative reforms to promote efficiency, maximize productivity, and eliminate waste in state and local government. The EO DOGE Team shall report any legislative recommendations to the Governor, the Chief Financial Officer, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives no later than September 30, 2025.
- Each state agency shall establish an Agency DOGE Team that shall be responsible for (1) utilizing advanced technology, such as artificial intelligence, as part of ongoing efforts to identify and eliminate unnecessary spending, programs, or contracts within the agency; (2) identifying any pending or funded federal grant awards that are inconsistent with the policies of this State and should be returned to the American taxpayer in furtherance of the President’s DOGE efforts; and (3) recommending administrative or legislative reforms to promote efficiency, maximize productivity, and eliminate waste in state and local government, including recommendations to leverage modern technology and to eliminate the duplication of services, reduce fees, and cut overhead. Each Agency DOGE Team shall report its progress on the foregoing responsibilities to the EO DOGE Team on a monthly basis until this Executive Order expires.
As the governor also outlined as specific directives:
- Florida will abolish an additional 70 boards and commissions this year
- Florida will conduct a deep dive into all facets of college and university operations and spending and make recommendations to the Board of Governors and State Board of Education to eliminate any wasteful spending.
- Florida will utilize AI to supplement ongoing efforts to review operations at our state agencies and identify more ways to cut unnecessary spending and eliminate bureaucracy.
- State task force will look into local government expenditures by utilizing publicly available county and municipal spending records to expose bloat within local governance.
- Florida will aid DOGE’s federal efforts to save taxpayers’ money by returning unused or surplus federal dollars allocated to the state.
In theory there’s the potential for overlap between the state’s existing DOGE task force and the one Governor DeSantis just established. However, there are a few distinct differences between them based on the breakout I just shared with you:
- A sense of urgency. The state’s constitutional task force is ongoing. DeSantis’s is to complete its work by the end of next March
- Control. Governor DeSantis accounted for a third of the state’s current constitutional board. He controls all of the appointments to his new DOGE board
- Specific directives. The constitutional board has a general mandate. DeSantis’s DOGE has specific mandates/efficiency goals
- Extended local authority. The constitutional board isn’t compelled to conduct audits of local governments. The DeSantis DOGE team is directed to do so
One of the similarities is that just as most of the constitutional DOGE team’s recommendations require action by the state legislature to take effect, the same will be true with DeSantis’s DOGE task force. The bottom line from my perspective is that extra eyes seeking greater efficiency and transparency with governments at all levels is a good thing.