DeSantis says Florida returned $878M in taxpayer funds to federal government after meeting with Musk, DOGE | FOX 51 Gainesville
Expand / Collapse search
☰

DeSantis says Florida returned $878M in taxpayer funds to federal government after meeting with Musk, DOGE

By and Landon Mion
Published  March 22, 2025 3:03pm EDT
Florida
FOX 35 Orlando

The Brief

    • Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has announced the state is returning more than $878 million in taxpayer funds to the federal government.
    • The announcement came following a meeting between DeSantis, Elon Musk and the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
    • DeSantis stated that Florida has been attempting to give back the money for the past few years during the Biden administration.

FLORIDA - Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Friday that the state was returning more than $878 million in taxpayer funds to the federal government that it had been attempting to give back for the past few years during the Biden administration.

The governor said the move came after a meeting with billionaire Elon Musk and his team at the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

More than $878 million in taxpayer funds

What they're saying:

DeSantis' office informed the U.S. Treasury Department that $878,112,000 would be returned to the federal government.

"For years, Florida has been trying to return federal funds to the federal government due to the ideological strings attached by the Biden Administration — but they couldn't even figure out how to accept it," DeSantis wrote Friday on X.

DeSantis suggested that other states "should follow Florida in supporting DOGE's efforts!"

The governor's office said in its email to the Treasury Department that it will search for additional excess federal funds that can be returned.

"At the direction of Gov. DeSantis and following his meeting with Elon Musk today, the State of Florida is formally returning $878,112,000 in taxpayer dollars to the federal government as part of DOGE's efforts," the email said. "We will also continue to identify other unused or surplus federal funding granted to Florida and determine if further refunds can be made. We hope our actions serve as a model for other states to follow."

Musk, who also serves as a senior advisor to President Donald Trump, responded to the governor's post on X.

"Almost a billion dollars of your taxpayer money saved," Musk said on the social media platform.

What is Florida's DOGE task force?

Dig deeper:

DeSantis announced last month the creation of Florida's DOGE task force to "further eliminate waste within state government, save taxpayers money and ensure accountability in Florida."

DeSantis said Florida's DOGE is tasked with:

Florida’s DOGE will:

  • Eliminate bureaucracy
  • Review colleges and universities
  • Further examine state agencies
  • Audit local governments
  • Return unused and surplus federal dollars

"Florida has set the standard for fiscally conservative governance, and our new Florida DOGE task force will do even more to serve the people of Florida," DeSantis said at the time. "It will eliminate redundant boards and commissions, review state university and college operations and spending, utilize artificial intelligence to further examine state agencies to uncover hidden waste, and even audit the spending habits of local entities to shine the light on waste and bloat."

STAY CONNECTED WITH FOX 35 ORLANDO:

The Source: This story was written based on information shared by FOX News and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. 

FloridaElon MuskRon DeSantisNewsNews