Wyoming and Idaho lawmakers are sharpening their pencils and scrutinizing every line of their states’ budgets, setting the stage for what could be significant changes to how public dollars are spent in the coming year. Both states are relying on so-called "DOGE" panels—named after the federal Department of Government Efficiency—as their guiding lights in the search for government savings and smarter spending. But as these efforts unfold, they are sparking spirited debate about what efficiency really means, who pays the price for cuts, and how far lawmakers should go in their quest to trim the fat.
In Wyoming, the conversation kicked off in earnest on August 20, 2025, when Stefan Johansson, director of the Wyoming Department of Health, appeared before the interim Joint Appropriations Committee. The focus was the Medicaid developmental disability waiver program, commonly known as DD waivers. This program, which acts as a social safety net for Medicaid-qualifying residents with intellectual disabilities or brain injuries, currently commands a budget of over $300 million for the biennium—a hefty slice of the state’s health spending.
During the meeting, Representative Ken Pendergraft, a Republican from Sheridan and a member of the Wyoming Freedom Caucus, pressed Johansson on whether the agency could make sacrifices to help balance the budget. “You’ll recall that last time we spoke … I expressed my interest and support in the DD waiver program,” Pendergraft said, according to Wyoming Public Media. “I think it’s a valuable thing to do. I made what might be kind of an unusual request of you, to have a little bit of introspection to your agency and see if there might be some sacrifices that you as an agency could make. So my question is, are we going to see, in your proposed budget coming up, any reflection of that?”
Johansson responded with a note of caution, highlighting the sheer scale and complexity of the department’s work. “I think that’s absolutely possible, but at this scale, keep in mind this program right now in our Department of Health budget is over $300 million on the biennium. It’s a large-scale, very expensive program, because these services and the acuity of some of these clients is very high,” he said.
While the committee didn’t vote to add or remove funding for the DD waiver program that day, the discussion took a decisive turn when Pendergraft proposed forming a three-member subcommittee under the Appropriations Committee. The goal: to conduct an “investigation and analysis” of the Health Department’s budget. He underscored the department’s outsized role in state finances, noting, “Whereas the Wyoming Department of Health has a larger total budget, about two and a quarter billion, than any other agency other than K-12. Although the Department of Health’s general fund budget has grown modestly, approximately $30 million in the last decade, the agency has benefited from considerable one-time federal funding during the pandemic. Whereas even modest percentage increases to such a large agency’s budget can have significant impact on total state budget needs, the Department of Health’s budget has an outsized impact on Wyoming’s total budget.” He concluded, “Aggressive legislative oversight and attention is warranted.”
The majority of the committee agreed, passing the proposal by voice vote. The subcommittee’s funding now awaits approval from the state Legislature’s Management Council. If greenlit, the panel would join three other recently formed legislative subcommittees, signaling a broader appetite in Wyoming for closer scrutiny of government spending.
Rep. John Bear, co-chair of the committee and a member of the Freedom Caucus, made it clear that the subcommittee would be on the hunt for efficiencies. “I think if you’re looking for efficiency, yes, we are, and that’s what DOGE stands for, Department of Government Efficiency,” Bear told Wyoming Public Media. He cited an advertising program promoting child vaccinations as one area ripe for cuts, arguing, “It is directed at children. I think parents really should be the ones determining what kind of vaccinations their children take. So to have an advertising program directed at children, I think, is neither wise nor in line with the Legislature’s intent to make sure that parents have the priority on decision making for the children.”
Not everyone on the committee was convinced that the new DOGE subcommittee would be money well spent. Senator Mike Gierau, a Democrat from Jackson, offered a pointed critique: “For a bunch of people that say they’re conservative, they sure do like spending money on road trips.” Gierau suggested that legislators could meet with agency heads on their own time or virtually, and he voiced skepticism about the real intent behind the panel. “What I heard when it was discussed was that it was a DOGE committee. [I heard] that they’re gonna take a big whack [to the budget]. I got a feeling they’re going to find out, when given the facts, that the Department of Health does a lot of really important things.” Gierau cited the DD waiver program, efforts to combat teen suicide, and Medicaid support as just a few of the department’s vital services.
Bear, for his part, argued that the potential savings far outweighed the subcommittee’s costs. “I think a few thousand dollars that could lead to tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, if not millions of dollars in savings is probably a good investment for the people,” he said. “This is where over $2 billion is placed into our budget. It’s one of the largest portions of our budget. So to do a deeper dive can help us ensure that we’re not creating unintended consequences, should we make some considerable cuts in that department.”
Rep. Trey Sherwood, a Democrat from Laramie, raised a different concern: the ripple effects of possible federal funding cuts. “What’s really been on my mind is, how will reductions from this current administration at the federal level impact the programs offered by the Department of Health?” Sherwood asked. “Because so many of them are 50% state, 50% federal. If the feds pull their 50%, then the question becomes, ‘Can the state backfill that program, or does that program go away because we may not have the resources to keep it going without the federal match?’”
Meanwhile, a similar quest for efficiency is underway in Idaho. On August 25, 2025, lawmakers there convened a DOGE task force meeting to review data on vacant state employee positions from 2019 to 2024, as they search for ways to cut the 2026 budget. Keith Bybee, budget director for the Legislative Services Office, reported that about 40% of state agencies maintained staffing vacancies at reasonable levels during that period, with most averaging less than 10% vacancies and largely spending their payroll budgets as intended.
Some Idaho lawmakers, however, worried that agencies might be keeping positions vacant to funnel money into other projects. House Assistant Republican Leader Josh Tanner suggested looking into calling remote workers back to state offices to reduce costs for utilities and space. “Some of them are empty, some of them are only partially filled and yet we’re still paying a massive amount of money for gas, heat and so we just want to make sure we’re utilizing the space and making sure we’re not wasting taxpayer money,” Tanner said, as reported by Boise State Public Radio.
The Idaho task force plans to submit its budget recommendations to the legislature when it returns to Boise in January 2026. With both states’ DOGE panels poised to make their mark, residents and public servants alike are bracing for what could be a season of tough decisions and spirited debate about the future of state services. For now, the only certainty is that the conversation about efficiency, savings, and the true cost of government is far from over.
