Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds signed an executive order Monday creating a state Department of Government Efficiency task force aimed at finding efficiencies in the state government, continuing her work to streamline the state bureaucracy.

The program, which was first announced at the governor’s Condition of the State address in January, is a nod to the federal DOGE headed by Elon Musk that aims to end fraud and waste in the federal government.

While Reynolds’ formation of the task force is similar to its federal counterpart that has upended the federal government, shuttering whole agencies and gaining access to private information, Reynolds said she does not see Iowa mimicking the methods used by the federal government in their review of state government efficiency.

The task force will be chaired by Emily Schmitt, the Chief Administrative Officer and General Counsel for Sukup Manufacturing based in Sheffield, Iowa, where she will lead a panel of roughly 15 to 20 stakeholders in searching for further efficiencies in state government. Reynolds directed the new task force to protect taxpayer investment, refine workforce programs, and investigate the use of artificial intelligence in state government.

Reynolds said she chose Schmitt because of her leadership on previous state task forces and her status as a leader in Iowa’s business community. Reynolds said she hopes the business leaders appointed to the task force will help Iowa run like a business.

Reynolds said the government is often insulated from competition, unlike business, and bringing in business leaders would bring innovative solutions because they are often forced to adapt and streamline to stay afloat.

“Their work on the task force will involve applying this mindset and approach to government and developing recommendations on workforce, innovative hubs, best practices, strategic performance metrics, and more,” Reynolds said in a news conference Monday.

The task force comes as Reynolds has made government efficiency a hallmark of her tenure in the governor’s office. Reynolds has led legislative efforts to streamline the state bureaucracy, including shaving down the number of state cabinet-level agencies from 37 to 16.

The bill also realigned state government, moving workforce programs from 11 different state agencies to one, placing licensing and inspection functions under one state agency, and placing former cabinet-level agencies under larger agencies that have similar functions to reduce the number of cabinet-level appointees.

The law also eliminated 600 state jobs that had been unfilled for more than a year.

In 2024, Reynolds also cut down the number of state boards and commissions from 256 to 189, eliminating or combining 67 state boards and commissions.

Reynolds’ office said this realignment has already saved Iowans $217 million, exceeding projections for the first four years of savings under the government realignment.

Reynolds said the realignment has been nonpartisan for the most part with Iowa Democrats voting for the governor’s restructuring of Iowa’s mental health system.

Iowa Rep. Adam Zabner, D-Iowa City, said he hopes to work with Schmitt on finding efficiency and waste in Iowa’s state government, he wrote in a letter to Schmitt Monday that he shared with The Daily Iowan.

“I am passionate about ensuring that Iowans receive the services they need as efficiently and cost-effectively as possible,” Zabner wrote. “I also strongly believe in fighting waste, fraud, and abuse in the state government. I was excited to see the governor announced her intention to work on these issues in her Condition of the State speech this year.”

However, Zabner pointed to educational savings accounts that help subsidize private education by providing the equivalent of the state’s cost per pupil funding to students who go to private school in Iowa and the privatization of Medicaid as the biggest costs and wastes in state government. Both were legislative priorities for Reynolds.

RELATED: From 37 to 16: Bill realigning Iowa state government would reduce number of cabinet agencies

Schmitt said the outcome of the task force will “be felt by all Iowans,” and she hopes it will create a more efficient, effective state government. She also hopes to increase the savings that Reynolds started with her initial realignment.

“I trust that the outcome of this task force will tangibly be felt by all Iowans when they interact with their state government,” Schmitt said. “Iowans, we need to do this with you, too. So, this government is by the people, for the people, but it’s also funded by the people, so we need to honor your hard work, hard-working dollars, and put them to work the best we can.”

In addition to examining efficiencies in state government, Reynolds is directing the task force to examine the relationships between state, local, and federal agencies to look for further efficiencies.

The task force is also seeking input from Iowans and state employees who have ideas on how to make state government more efficient. To receive feedback, the task force has created an X, formerly known as Twitter, account and will launch an online portal in the near future.

“You can help us reduce bureaucracy, cut red tape, and also optimize your government,” Schmitt said. “We look forward to a comprehensive review to really grasp how high we can have the efficiency in government. It is about leveraging the resources in a way that optimizes and reduces spending at the same time, which should produce a government working with the people while still innovating sustaining solutions.”