Elon Musk’s cost-cutting crusade is trickling down to US statehouses. Governor Ron DeSantis is launching Florida’s own version of the department of government efficiency – known as DOGE. Already, he wants to cut $3 billion and more than 700 state government jobs as part of the upcoming budget. Kansas and Missouri lawmakers are soliciting input from their residents for ideas on how to slash costs.
Since Jan, states have launched at least eight task forces or legislative efforts aimed at boosting govt efficiency. And lawmakers in nearly a dozen other states have proposed bills that would create their own DOGE-like divisions.
The efforts, mostly from Republican governors and lawmakers, show how state officials are eager to capitalise on the Trump administration’s rhetoric around cost-cutting.