Numerous Republican-led states are seeking to implement measures to slash the size and cost of state governments in an effort to mirror the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) in Washington.
Governors in Oklahoma and New Hampshire have used their executive authority to establish DOGE-like commissions, while state lawmakers in Texas, North Carolina, and Missouri have introduced measures to establish their own versions of the department.
The efforts come as DOGE makes dramatic cuts to government programs, notably including the United States Agency for International Development, in Washington. They also underscore the department’s influence among Republicans beyond the Beltway.
“Politics can trickle down, and I think there is a lot of energy behind what DOGE is doing and their mission,” said Jesse Hunt, a Republican strategist and former communications director at the Republican Governors Association.
“At the state level, you’re seeing what is normal functions for Republican governors postelection, but in terms of ‘branding,’ it’s recognizable,” he said.
On Monday, Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) issued an executive order establishing DOGE-OK within the state’s Office of Management and Enterprise Services. In New Hampshire, Gov. Kelly Ayotte’s (R) first executive order after being sworn in created the state’s Commission on Government Efficiency.
In Texas, the state House announced plans to establish a Delivery of Government Efficiency Program, which would consist of 13 members with the goal of weeding out inefficiencies in state agencies. In Missouri, the state Senate rolled out a new online portal that allows residents to “to report any instances of government duplication, waste, or inefficiencies,” echoing the mission of DOGE.
On Wednesday, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) touted the state as a blueprint for DOGE at the federal level during testimony before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee in Washington, telling the panel “Iowa was doing ‘DOGE’ before DOGE was a thing.”
Republicans seeking to cut down on the size and scope of government is not a new concept, but the speed and breadth at which DOGE has moved at the federal level has elicited praise from Republicans and a sharp rebuke from Democrats. Protests against the program and its cuts have erupted in Washington and across the U.S., with critics putting the blame on Elon Musk, who has spearheaded the effort.
Democrats are also telegraphing that Musk and DOGE efforts inside and outside of Washington have become a central target of their ire going into the second Trump administration.
“Republican state legislatures are the primary vehicles making Trump’s agenda come to life, with dangerous and lasting consequences,” said Sam Paisley, interim communications director at the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee. “It’s clear state Republicans are feeling more emboldened than ever to pursue the most extreme legislation possible with Trump in office and they are using Project 2025 as the blueprint.”
Democrats have also pointed to their own governors’ efforts to cut down on cost and promote efficiency. In November, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) signed an executive order that expedited the permitting process for economic development and infrastructure projects in the state.
And last year, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) literally cut down a stack of what he called “wasteful” and “unnecessary” executive orders with a table saw. Colorado Senate Republicans called the move “a very small step in the right direction” but urged him “to take more substantial action to reduce the expansive regulatory framework that has grown during his tenure.”
“The idea of looking into ways to make government more efficient and to empower public servants to do their jobs better, I celebrate that,” said Sara Mogulescu, president of The Volcker Alliance, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting public sector employees.
“The question is, are we going to do it by thoughtfully understanding what needs to happen, what can happen, what’s possible, what is required?” she continued. “Or are we going to do it impulsively?”
Critics argue the move for red states to implement their own versions of DOGE is a part of a broader strategy for Republicans and red states curry favor with the new administration.
“Instead of trying to suck up to Elon Musk, what you should be doing is actually trying to run your state and delivering for the people that elected you,” said Aaron Kleinman, director of research at The States Project, a left-leaning group dedicated to boosting Democrats in state legislature races.
“It makes a mockery of the idea of oversight,” he added. “Broadly, everybody is in favor of oversight and good governance, but it should be coming from people who are accountable to the states.”
The strategy for state-level Republicans to appeal to the Trump administration has been used by governors in other policy areas as well, notably immigration. In Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) called for a special legislative session as a means of implementing Trump’s immigration agenda in Florida. In Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott (R) said the state’s National Guard was “granted the power of immigration officials to make immigration arrests.”
However, on DOGE, Republicans say the administration’s actions so far were telegraphed during the campaign by Trump.
“You have a lot of good Republican governors who recognized this is something Donald Trump has embraced at the federal level, but something that is a standard for what Republicans should pursue if given the opportunity to run government in any form or fashion,” Hunt said.
“If you’re a Republican that isn’t focused on reducing the size of government at any level and reducing regulation, what are you doing?” he said.
