Washington would get its own Department of Government Efficiency if state Rep. Jim Walsh had his way.
The Aberdeen Republican, who also chairs the state’s Republican Party, recently introduced House Bill 2076, which would create a so-called DOGE within the Evergreen State.
The proposed department is a nod to the new federal Department of Government Efficiency under the second administration of President Donald Trump.
Walsh’s bill, which has five Republican co-sponsors, received a first reading and was referred to the State Government and Tribal Relations Committee on April 12.
Democratic lawmakers don’t much like the sound of DOGE, Walsh said in an interview. That’s to be expected. But he received “more enthusiastic support from fiscal conservatives and a lot of support from the general public.”
“I mean, the reason I did it was I had people asking me to do it — contacting me by email or text message saying, ‘You need to create a WA DOGE,’” Walsh said. “The problem is it’s very hard to get our executive branch excited about accountability and efficiency. So this creature, unlike the federal creature, is a creature of the legislative branch rather than the executive branch.”
Supporters of Trump’s DOGE argue that it scales back on bureaucratic bloat and saves the taxpayers’ money. Critics say that the federal government’s efficiency mantra is backfiring amid cuts to broad swaths of federal funding, programs and jobs.
Walsh argues his proposed DOGE would similarly aim to eliminate government waste, tightening the reins on agencies acting outside their legal bounds and ensuring that rules are clear and up-to-date.
Washington’s DOGE would work under the Legislature and file reports regularly with the Governor’s Office and state lawmakers. The final report outlining recommendations and findings would be due July 2028.
HB 2076’s text says the bill is necessary to implement the budget, a term used for legislation exempt from cut-off dates. That descriptor is used liberally to try to keep bills from dying.
Walsh’s idea comes as Washington faces a multi-billion-dollar budget shortfall — and as state lawmakers work to design a budget proposal that Gov. Bob Ferguson will sign. Ferguson has urged budget writers to prioritize savings over leaning too heavily on new or increased taxes.
Walsh’s bill says that if a new regulation is proposed by any state agency, then the agency would need to mark at least two other rules to repeal. Washington DOGE could also probe whether agencies make decisions or enforce rules based not on law, but “on ideology.”
Bill dead in the water?
House Speaker Laurie Jinkins, a Tacoma Democrat, relayed through the House Democratic Caucus’ communications director that the bill “is not worth her comment.”
And Walsh acknowledged that Ferguson likely wouldn’t sign it if the proposal were actually to reach his desk.
But to Walsh, the measure is neither a joke nor a stunt. Rather, he said, it’s a “well thought-out” and methodical bill.
“Some of our state agencies, I know for a fact, aren’t very clear on what their mission statement is,” he said. “So it does apply some of those efficiency standards and practices that are more often associated with private-sector firms, but I think we’ve adopted them appropriately to government agencies.”
Walsh said that the state’s proposed DOGE would be temporary. Under the bill, each state agency would see 6 percent of its operating-budget allowance held in a reserve account; Walsh noted that Ferguson recommended 6 percent cuts across state agencies to help balance the budget shortly before he was sworn in as governor.
After an agency completes a Washington DOGE audit, the 6 percent could be sent back with legislative approval, Walsh said. Some $750,000 would be appropriated to cover a small staff and overhead costs at the temporary agency.
The bill faces mountainous hurdles in a Democrat-controlled Legislature. Still, Walsh said: “One always hopes.”
“Clearly this is offered late in the cycle,” he said. “You know, maybe we take a look at it next session, or maybe it reappears as an initiative.”
The 2025 legislative session is scheduled to end April 27.
This isn’t the first time House Republicans have introduced a bill echoing goings-on at the federal level.
In mid-February, three Republican representatives filed a measure that would end the Office of Equity in Washington — one that the state’s Legislative Black Caucus blasted as a “threat to racial equity and justice.”
