TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – A proposed amendment making its way through the Florida Legislature would effectively establish a Florida version of the DOGE within state government.
The proposal (HJR 1325) would get rid of the Office of the position of Lieutenant Governor, as well as the Government Efficiency Task Force.
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In their place, the amendment would create a new Cabinet position: the Commissioner of Government Efficiency (COGE).
The lieutenant governor position has remained vacant after Jeanette Nuñez was given a post at Florida International University last month. Typically, the lieutenant governor is the first in line to become governor if the previous governor dies in office or is otherwise removed.
But the COGE would be responsible for investigating and reporting on potential government fraud, waste and abuse — duties mirroring that of the Elon Musk-led DOGE, which has been making major cuts to federal agencies in a push to reduce overall government spending.
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Even if approved by lawmakers, HJR 1325 would still need support from at least 60% of voters during the next general election.
But if the amendment manages to jump those hurdles, a COGE would be appointed by the Legislature in 2027 and serve until 2028. Afterward, voters would be responsible for electing the COGE every two years.
And beginning with the 2030 general election, the COGE would be elected on the same four-year cycle as the governor and cabinet, likewise subject to an eight-year term limit. By 2044, voters would then have the option to repeal the COGE position.
One of the bill’s cosponsors — Rep. Tyler Sirois (R-Merritt Island) — spoke before a House committee last week to promote the legislation.
“In short, we’re creating a watchdog position in state government,” he said.
Rep. Lindsay Cross (D-St. Petersburg) pointed out that the bill would eliminate the position of a state auditor appointed by the Legislature.
“What is the reason to get rid of an auditor who is already looking at trying to increase our government efficiency?” she asked. “And then replacing that person with someone else who is basically going to be doing essentially the same thing?”
“We’re recreating it as an elected Cabinet position...” Sirois responded. “The position will be directly responsible to the electorate.”
Furthermore, Sirois addressed why the legislation aims to eliminate the Lieutenant Governor position.
“This was an opportunity for us to look at the form and function of our government, to evaluate the position, to evaluate responsibilities, to see what we can take away, to see where we add,” he said. “And I think if you eliminate the office of Lieutenant Governor, and you have an opportunity to restructure the Cabinet by using some of the savings that will be achieved by eliminating that position, you can refocus the allocation of resources on supporting the new Cabinet officer.”
The proposal has now passed both of its committees, putting it a step closer to a full House vote. A similar bill was filed in the Senate, which is still scheduled for two more committee hearings.
Meanwhile, DOGE — which has been hard at work slashing federal spending and government positions in the interest of reducing bureaucratic bloat — has made other waves in Florida, too.
Last month, DeSantis unveiled a new Florida DOGE task force, which aims to streamline government operations and “eliminate unnecessary bureaucracy” to ensure that taxpayer dollars are being used efficiently.
DeSantis said he hopes the task force’s work will help eliminate 900 positions in addition to the 740 positions he is already proposing to eliminate. Moreover, he said public universities will be subjected to an independent review and audit to study the efficiency of their operations.
Last week, DeSantis posted the news to social media, revealing a letter from his office to the U.S. Department of Treasury stating that Florida is returning $878,112,000 in taxpayer dollars back to the federal government as part of DOGE’s efforts.
“For years, Florida has been trying to return federal funds to the federal government due to the ideological strings attached by the Biden Administration — but they couldn’t even figure out how to accept it,” DeSantis wrote. “Today, I met with @elonmusk and the DOGE team, and we got this done in the same day.”
The letter also says that DeSantis’ office will continue to search for other unused or surplus federal funding granted to Florida to determine whether additional refunds can be made.
