The Florida Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is warning local governments throughout the state not to tamper with records in anticipation of visits by state audit teams, following claims that some local leaders are instructing their employees to delete, alter, or fabricate information that may show poor or wasteful spending habits.
"We've received allegations that local government officials across the state have been instructing their staff to delete, alter, or fabricate information before Florida DOGE site visits," DOGE said. "This is not acceptable. FDLE digital forensic specialists will support auditors from Florida DOGE and FL CFO [Chief Financial Officer] @GovGoneWild [Blaise Ingoglia]."
"We are putting local governments on notice: any effort to mislead our DOGE teams, conceal city or county activities, or pressure staff to be less than forthcoming or truthful will not be tolerated," they added.
Led by CFO Ingoglia, Florida has stepped up efforts to uncover waste, fraud, and abuse by local counties and municipalities under DOGE, which was established under Gov. Ron DeSantis in February.
Ingoglia has also wasted little time getting to work himself, despite being on the job for just a matter of weeks after being appointed by the governor. Recently, Ingoglia and other DOGE officials requested documents from Miami-Dade after the county reached a $402 million budget deficit despite growing revenues.
He also criticized Miami Mayor Daniella Levine Cava over the situation.
".@MayorDaniella thinks removing waste, fraud and abuse from local government and offering property tax relief is “politically driven," Ingoglia said. "What a shame that the voters of Miami-Dade don’t have a mayor that actually cares about them."
Including Miami-Dade, Ingoglia has opened up inquiries into the City of Gainesville and Broward County. All three moves are part of the state's plan to DOGE 10 10 to 15 counties, according to the governor.
