FRANKFORT, Ky. (LEX 18) — A bill that would create a Kentucky version of the Department of Government Efficiency, known as DOGE, is moving forward in the state Capitol.
Sen. Lindsey Tichenor's Senate Bill 257 would require the state auditor's office to conduct performance reviews of government programs and agencies.
State Auditor Allison Ball told lawmakers on the Senate State and Local Government Committee that her office is already dedicated to "rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse."
"We know the office exists to protect against waste, fraud, and abuse. We know we should be looking at efficiencies. We do that to the best that we can," Ball said.
The new bill would allocate additional resources to the auditor's team, enabling more thorough evaluations of government efficiency. A report on the audit findings is also required to be sent to both the Governor and the Legislature.
KOGE can make recommendations, like the auditor's team already does in audits, but they do not have the power to make changes.
"We can provide information. We can say this is the way to do it, this is the way to do it better, make sure the public knows, make sure all people in authority know," said Ball. "But at the end of the day, it's usually the body who is investigated who has the make that decision."
"That's the way our separation of power work and I think it works well," she added.
DOGE's work in cutting government programs and laying off many government workers has heightened concern for government employees. But supporters of SB 257 say job cuts are not the intent behind their proposed efficiency measures.
"That's not what this is about," said State Senator Mike Nemes.
Nemes gave an example of how he envisioned the office working using state vehicles.
"Why do you have 10 cars when you have 6 people using them? Something similar to that," he said. "That's what you're going to be looking at. Not losing jobs."
If the Kentucky DOGE is established, Ball said Medicaid is likely to be among the first government programs the auditor reviews.
"I think low hanging fruit is probably Medicaid. There's always concern if there's fraud happening in that area," Ball noted.
