Governor Ron DeSantis revealed some findings of the Florida Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) at a Wednesday press conference in Jacksonville. The Governor and Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia discussed instances of “reckless spending and woke initiatives” in several counties including Broward.
Examples include:
—$890,000 (since 2020) on DEI training “including pushing the Genderbread Person.”
—$175,000 on virtual art in the Metaverse.
—$44,000 to support the United Nations (UN) Treaty on gender equity.
In a statement, Governor DeSantis said:
Florida DOGE teams alongside @CFOIngoglia have been investigating cities and counties where taxpayers have raised concerns about wasteful spending.
These audits have uncovered many irresponsible uses of taxpayer funds. It’s unconscionable for local governments to raise taxes on Floridians in order to subsidize wasteful spending.
Under my leadership, Floridians can continue to expect fiscal responsibility at the state level—and we are working to bring relief to our citizens being squeezed by property taxes at the local level.
“Floridians across the state have made it clear that they will no longer tolerate waste, fraud, and abuse of taxpayer dollars,” said Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia. “I have traveled the state to expose nearly $1 billion in wasted taxpayer dollars across just FIVE local governments. Local governments are crying poor but continue to spend wastefully on things like ‘counting trees.’ The taxpayers are tired of it, which is why property tax relief is their top concern. I was proud to be here with Governor DeSantis to expose some of the wasteful line items in local government budgets.”
At the press conference didn’t you ask about the cities in Broward, if any of them would be subject to review. I’m not sure what Mr. Ingolia answered.
Allegations of wasted state funds:
Legislators and media outlets have pointed to several areas where they claim the DeSantis administration has misspent taxpayer money:
Immigration enforcement: A bill passed by the state legislature included nearly $300 million for immigration enforcement, a policy that opponents argue is both expensive and primarily political.
Flight to Martha’s Vineyard: Florida chartered flights to transport about 50 migrants from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard in September 2022, a move that cost the state around $1.5 million.
“Culture war” spending: The state spent approximately $17 million in legal fees to fight Disney over the company’s opposition to the “Don’t Say Gay” law.
No-bid contracts: The administration is accused of spending hundreds of millions of dollars on no-bid contracts for an immigrant detention camp in the Everglades.
COVID-19 funds: DeSantis initially refused billions of dollars in federal COVID-19 relief funding, a decision criticized by some Republicans.
Hope Florida deal: A controversial $10 million deal involving the Department of Children and Families, the Hope Florida program, and nonprofits linked to the DeSantis administration, including one run by his wife, has raised questions about accountability and misuse of settlement money.