Idaho DOGE task force holds first meeting, aims to streamline state government

IDAHO, USA — Idaho’s newly formed Department of Government Efficiency Task Force held its first meeting Friday July 25, launching what officials said could be the state’s most comprehensive government reorganization effort in decades.

The bipartisan committee, co-chaired by Rep. Jeff Ehlers and Sen. Todd Lakey, is examining state agencies for potential reduction, consolidation or elimination. The task force also will review state employee efficiency and travel expenses.

“While we’ve seen some examples at the federal level, particularly with Elon Musk and his crew and other states. I think we’re going to do it our Idaho way, and which might look a little different than what you’ve seen in others other states or other examples, but I think we’re going to do what’s best for the state,” Ehlers said at the meeting. 

The state hasn’t undergone major reorganization since constitutional amendments in the 1970s, said Legislative Services Office Analyst, Jared Tatro. Back then, the state with a push from the former Govenor, Cecil Andrus, passed a joint resolution that was taken to voters to reconfigure the then 268 agencies and place them under 20 different departments. 

Tatro said back then, the goal was to make it clearer which agencies and departments do what for residents. Today’s initiative is more focused towards how to cut down on unnecessary positions and ways to save money. 

Amy Fetcher, former chief transformation officer for Arkansas, spoke remotely about that state’s reorganization and money savings. She emphasized the importance of building consensus and tracking savings. She encouraged Idaho to closely track which changes give them results because Arkansas didn’t, which made it hard to measure the success. 

The task force launched a public input portal at legislature.idaho.gov/doge where citizens can submit ideas about government waste or inefficiencies. The committee held a public comment portion during its first meeting. Mostly residents were excited to see what the task force is able to compete, with other members of the public questioned if DOGE would solve problems or just recycle them. 

The committee plans to meet monthly with the goal of presenting legislation and policy recommendations for the next legislative session.