Find and Eliminate the Waste in Lansing
Michigan's government is bloated with waste. Patrick Kapenga will push for a comprehensive audit of state spending and force Lansing to justify every dollar it takes from working families.
Lansing Is Drowning in Waste
For years, Lansing has treated taxpayer money like a blank check. Redundant agencies. Consultant contracts that go nowhere. Executive bloat. Hidden earmarks. The result is a government that grows larger every year while delivering less for the people it serves.
Michigan families are paying for a government that is not working for them. Roads crumble while budgets expand, schools struggle while consultants collect six-figure contracts, and the essential services families depend on keep getting worse. Something has to give.
This isn't a partisan issue — it's a management issue. State government should be run with the same accountability that Michigan families and businesses apply to their own budgets. Every dollar wasted is a dollar taken from a family that earned it.
Patrick Kapenga will bring real fiscal accountability to Lansing — because eliminating waste is the foundation that makes responsible tax cuts possible.
The Waste We Can Cut
Taxpayer money is disappearing into programs and contracts that don't deliver results. Here are the areas a comprehensive audit will target.
- Redundant State Agencies
- Consultant Contract Bloat
- Hidden Earmarks & Pork Spending
- Executive Compensation Excess
- Duplicative Programs & Services
- Unused State Properties & Facilities
- Inefficient Procurement Practices
Every dollar of waste eliminated is a dollar that can be returned to Michigan families or invested in services that actually work.
A Comprehensive Audit, Real Accountability
Patrick will fight to bring real fiscal discipline to Michigan — because government should work for you, not the other way around.
Zero-Based Audit of State Spending
Patrick will push for an independent audit of all state spending — agencies, programs, consultant contracts, all of it. If a program cannot justify its existence with results, it gets cut.
Eliminate Duplication & Consolidate
Many state agencies do overlapping work. Patrick will consolidate redundant departments, merge inefficient programs, and eliminate unnecessary layers of bureaucracy that slow down services and waste taxpayer dollars.
Real Accountability, Real Results
Once waste is identified, it gets eliminated — permanently. Patrick will establish independent oversight and transparency requirements so Michiganders know exactly how their tax dollars are being spent.
Fiscal Responsibility Unlocks Everything Else
You cannot responsibly cut taxes if you are not also cutting waste. You cannot fund essential services if money is disappearing into bureaucratic black holes. Patrick's approach is different: first, we prove government can be efficient and accountable. Only then do we responsibly reduce the tax burden on working families.
This creates the fiscal foundation that makes everything else possible — from eliminating the income tax to restoring the American Dream in our institutions.
Explore the Income Tax PlanFind and Eliminate the Waste FAQ — District 89
What does Patrick Kapenga mean by 'Find and Eliminate the Waste'?
It's Patrick's plan to bring real fiscal accountability to Michigan's state government. He'll push for a comprehensive, independent audit of all state spending — identifying waste, redundancy, and bloated contracts and cutting them — so government works for taxpayers, not the other way around.
Will cutting waste hurt essential services in Michigan?
No. Patrick's approach targets the bloat, not the core. Essential services like education, public safety, and infrastructure will be protected. The goal is to cut wasteful spending — redundant agencies, consultant bloat, and inefficient procurement — so resources can go where they actually matter.
Which areas of Michigan state government are most wasteful?
Conversations with sitting legislators and public records point to significant overlap in departments handling economic development, workforce training, and environmental regulation. Michigan also spends heavily on outside consultant contracts for work state employees could handle, and maintains properties and programs that no longer serve their original purpose.
How much money could Michigan save by cutting the waste?
We believe hundreds of millions in annual savings are achievable by eliminating redundant programs, consolidating overlapping agencies, and renegotiating wasteful contracts. Michigan Auditor General reports regularly document multi-million-dollar findings — a systematic audit would expose how much more is hiding in plain sight. These savings create the fiscal room needed to responsibly phase out Michigan's income tax.
How does cutting waste connect to eliminating the income tax?
You can't responsibly cut taxes without first cutting waste. That's why this pillar comes before the income tax fight — Michigan has to prove it can operate efficiently before asking taxpayers to trust that eliminating the income tax won't gut essential services. Once the waste is gone and the budget is lean, phasing out the 4.25% income tax becomes not just possible but inevitable. The pillars are designed to work in sequence.
Take Action
Help Demand Accountability from Lansing
Patrick cannot fix Lansing's waste problem alone — he needs your support. Stand with him to demand a government that works for you.