Latest news with #R-Southlake
Yahoo
08-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Here's what Texas DOGE talked about on day one
AUSTIN (Nexstar) — Despite not directly discussing legislation, the Texas House Delivery of Government Efficiency (Texas DOGE) committee met for more than 12 hours in their inaugural session. Here's a partial recap of what they discussed. Before taking any testimony, Chair Giovanni Capriglione, R-Southlake, started to discuss his vision for the upstart committee. 'We will not be passive observers. We will be enforcers of accountability now,' Capriglione said. 'Our work will be thorough. Public hearings will shine a light on failures. Legislative proposals will emerge from this committee to drive reform. Investigations will hold bad actors accountable. We are here to advocate for the taxpayer, the small business owner, the retiree on a fixed income and the Texan who depends on public services that are too often compromised by mismanagement and negligence.' Vice Chair Salman Bhoijani, D-Euless, laid also laid out how he hopes Texas DOGE will operate. 'As the eighth largest economy in the world, with the climate of innovation and doing more with less, Texas can lead the way in responsible, efficient government, ensuring tax money is being responsibly should be a bipartisan goal,' he said. 'But let me be clear, my focus is not about cutting essential services or devaluing hard working public servants. I'm here to work with you, not against you, to improve how we serve Texans.' The first agency to testify in front of the committee was the Texas Sunset Commission, who the Texas DOGE Committee will have direct oversight over. Sunset Commission Executive Director Eric Beverly started with prepared remarks, noting how the agency provides oversight similar to what DOGE is tasked with doing. He said in their 48 years of operation, they've abolished 42 agencies and programs, saving taxpayers a billion dollars since 1985. 'Sunset has resulted in less regulation, improved agency performance and greater government accountability,' Beverly said. 'There's no doubt that the face of state government looks different today due to the sunset process.' Next, the committee heard from the Department of Information Resources (DIR) Executive Director Amanda Crawford. DIR impressed the committee with the scale at which they help government agencies, from state agencies down to school districts, secure cheap software and technology assistance. Crawford estimated the DIR has saved Texas taxpayers at least $376 million in cost avoidance through securing cooperative contracts — using their leverage as a large collection of organizations to negotiate better deals. Crawford also highlighted areas where DIR has helped moved government services online through saving taxpayer money. 'DIR has returned to the general revenue fund 193 million through the program, and issued nearly six million in rebates to our customers over the last five years,' Crawford said. 'For example, renewing a driver's license online means Texans don't have to drive to a location wait in line, resulting in savings of around $57 per person and at least two hours of their precious time. In addition, utilizing online services can free up state employees to complete other essential duties, saving agencies time and money.' One aspect the committee discussed was to require smaller, local government organizations — like cities, school districts, special purpose districts — to use cooperative contracts. State agencies are already required to do so, but it's optional for other government entities. 'Why aren't they using you,' State Rep. Briscoe Cain, R-Deer Park, asked. 'It's more than likely they don't know,' Crawford responded. 'Should they be made to use you,' Cain asked. 'Would the taxpayers be happy? Would they save a lot of money?' 'I think they would save a lot of money,' Crawford explained. The committee heard from Gwen Griffin, the chair of the new Texas Space Commission's Board of Directors. Griffin talked about the need for Texas to lead the way in America's reintroduction to space. 'Resources that can benefit our lives, such as helium-3 are abundant on the lunar surface. It's very rare here on Earth. We need to learn how to mine them and bring them back to Earth for the benefit of humanity,' Griffin said. Committee members were excited to hear about the new advancements in space exploration, but showed some concerns about potential conflicts of interest in contract awards. Within their board of directors are representatives from SpaceX, Lockheed Martin, Boeing and more. 'It just concerns me, because it looks like you received applications, 281 applications… [for] $3.4 billion, but almost 20% of the grants given were people on your board,' State Rep. Ana-Maria Ramos, D-Richardson, said. 'We disclose to our chief compliance officer and our executive director if we do have a conflict of interest,' Griffin said. 'We never see those applications, we do not vote or speak about those applications if we are conflicted in our open meetings. Therefore we're not involved in that process should we be conflicted. Griffin also clarified that the grants are not going to members of the board, but the companies they're affiliated with. Further installments of the DOGE Committee Recap will be published leading up to their next hearing on March 12. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Texas' DOGE committee takes inspiration from Elon Musk's federal operation
A few weeks after Elon Musk waved a chainsaw at a conservative gathering touting the Department of Government Efficiency's federal cost cutting efforts, the Texas House kicked off the first meeting for its own version of DOGE. Leaders of the Delivery of Government Efficiency committee in the House are following in Musk's footsteps, promising sweeping changes and reductions to the size of state government. Committee Chair Giovanni Capriglione, R-Southlake, told The Texas Tribune that DOGE in Texas share's goals with its federal namesake in trying to eliminate waste, fraud and abuse in government. 'We're going to make long-term changes in how we operate here for the state,' Capriglione said. 'This is about, 'How do we fundamentally change the way the state operates so you can do it in a much more efficient way?'' So far, Musk's operation in the nation's capital has fired more than 30,000 federal employees with more layoffs to come, drawing sharp pushback from Democrats and some concerns from Republicans. DOGE's website has claimed to cut about $105 billion as of Monday, though that amount is unverifiable and is expected to be much lower. Asked about statewide layoffs, Capriglione said the committee 'doesn't have the authority to go and terminate employees,' though members may recommend funding reductions to agencies that yield staffing cuts. Democrats on the committee say they're optimistic about the opportunity to find inefficiencies, but are wary of their colleagues trying to emulate the rapidfire layoffs and cuts happening at the federal level. What Musk's DOGE has done is 'completely terrifying,' and is putting the health and safety of millions of Americans at risk, said Rep. Ana-María Rodríguez Ramos, one of the five Democrats on the committee. She doesn't want Texas to replicate what DOGE is doing in Washington, D.C. 'I would be the fiercest fighter against that, because what they're doing at the federal level is just outrageous and the consequences are going to be harmful for decades,' said Rodríguez Ramos, who is the chair of the Texas Legislative Progressive Caucus. DOGE committee Vice Chair Salman Bhojani, D-Euless, said during DOGE's first hearing Wednesday that the committee must avoid 'partisan rhetoric.' He said that unlike Congress, members of the Texas legislature work in a bipartisan manner and he expects that will be the case with the state's version of DOGE. 'Texas can lead the way with responsible and efficient government,' Bhojani said during the hearing. 'But let me be clear, my focus is not about cutting essential services or devaluing hardworking public servants. I'm here to work with you, not against you, to improve how we serve Texans.' Some of Musk's efforts with DOGE have sparked chaos in federal agencies. The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently fired some employees who were working to address bird flu, only to since request those employees come back. The Trump administration has also had to reverse the layoffs of hundreds of federal employees who work on the nation's nuclear weapons programs. As a legislative committee, there's a 'fundamental difference' between what the Texas and federal versions of DOGE are capable of doing, Capriglione said. Rather than focusing on public staffing cuts, in its early days, committee leaders will focus on finding areas to recommend for modernizing outdated state technology systems and auditing government agencies. According to the House resolution that created Texas' DOGE, the committee's jurisdiction includes topics like cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and 'emerging technology.' The committee will also likely hear bills on similar topics, Capriglione said. So far, 27 bills have been referred to the committee, including proposals related to auditing state agencies and increasing government pay transparency. He added that Texas' DOGE aims to be a 'one-stop shop' for Texans to bring forward their grievances about state government services. In an op-ed in the Dallas Morning News published last week, Capriglione said that reducing government spending is a 'central part of [his] political career.' 'This committee will operate with precision,' Capriglione said during Wednesday's hearing. 'At times, we will use a scalpel, carefully dissecting inefficiencies to make government work smarter. At other times, we will wield a sledgehammer, tearing down systemic waste and corruption that may have gone unchallenged.' The committee has 13 members, including Capriglione, with eight Republicans and five Democrats. Like other committees, DOGE will hear public testimony on proposed legislation and vote those bills out of committee so they can receive a vote on the House floor. Texas isn't the only state that has followed in the federal government's footsteps by creating its own DOGE. Some other Republican-led states, including Florida and Iowa, have created their own versions, with some in the form of legislative committees and others created as additional government divisions. Rep. David Cook, a Mansfield Republican, said the bipartisan nature of the committee and its inclusion of elected officials represent the biggest difference between the Texas DOGE and the Washington, D.C. operation. But he added that the 'goals will be similar' between the two. 'This is an example of where the federal government came up with a really good idea,' Cook said. '[Texans] want their government to be efficient and implement good, common sense policies.' Texas already has another legislative commission that is responsible for reviewing waste and inefficiency in state government. The Texas Sunset Advisory Commission — made up of two members of the public, and five members of the House and Senate alike — has abolished 95 state agencies since its inception in 1977. According to the commission's website, it will review about 130 agencies over the next 12 years. Poncho Nevárez, a former Democratic state representative and past member of the commission, said since the Sunset Advisory Commission does not review each agency every legislative session, the DOGE committee could help fill that gap. If an agency is not scheduled to be reviewed by the commission during a particular session, then the DOGE committee might have the ability to look into that agency, he added. But Nevárez is still wary that the Texas DOGE will try to 'slash and burn' funding like Musk is doing in Washington. He noted the irony of Republicans railing about waste when they have had control of every statewide office and the Legislature for decades. The last time a Democrat won statewide office in Texas was 1994. 'Well shit, who's been running that government for almost 30 years?' Nevárez said. 'They act like all of these agencies have been running on their own. But all those are Republican appointees.' We can't wait to welcome you to the 15th annual Texas Tribune Festival, Texas' breakout ideas and politics event happening Nov. 13–15 in downtown Austin. Step inside the conversations shaping the future of education, the economy, health care, energy, technology, public safety, culture, the arts and so much more. Hear from our CEO, Sonal Shah, on TribFest 2025. TribFest 2025 is presented by JPMorganChase.
