ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (WFLA) — A team of auditors with the Florida DOGE arrived Wednesday morning at the St. Petersburg City Hall. This is a two-day effort to comb through the city’s finances in person and ask city staff follow-up questions.

Hours after the team arrived, protestors were at City Hall to express their concerns. One of them was Mary McMullen.

“We don’t need them telling us how to spend our money and how we should live,” McMullen said.

The longtime resident joined others who held up signs. One stated, “Hands off our city.” Another protestor wrote, “Dump DOGE,” and another sign showed: “We trust our elected city government. Not DOGE.”

The protestors were also concerned on how the state may interpret some of the city’s efforts and link those initiatives to diversity, equity, and inclusion.

City Councilwoman Brandi Gabbard thanked those residents for their support.

“The City of St. Petersburg has been very good stewards with the tax dollars that we collect from residents, public safety being one. I would push back on any claim that there is waste within those tax dollars,” Gabbard said.

Gabbard, too, is concerned about whether the state would see value in the city’s resiliency efforts, especially since she represents neighbors in a coastal municipality.

Minutes after the protest, demonstrators made their way inside City Hall to listen to Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia during a news conference.

“What we are seeing is a lot of waste, fraud, and abuse in a lot of places that local governments can cut,” Ingoglia said.

The newly appointed DeSantis cabinet member was asked to go into specifics.

“We are not going to give specific examples. We will detail those examples when the report is released,” Ingoglia said.

Ingoglia added that the audit will not only look at the overall purpose of some initiatives and programs but mainly the process of getting them started or keeping them up and running.

“It may be that a contract could be worthwhile. It could be a good use of taxpayer money. But how they’re going through the procurement process and putting out to bid, that may be questionable,” Ingoglia said.

Ingoglia said the auditors are currently employed by the state. They are all from several departments. The CFO said the cost of the overall DOGE effort will be a small price tag since state resources have already been allocated for the effort.

During the news conference, tempers flared between Ingoglia and protestors. McMullen left in the middle of the news conference.

The ultimate goal officials have after DOGE is to present a report with recommendations for cities and counties to cut or save money. Those funds could help supplement any money loss from funding essential services if leaders reduce property taxes. The other option is voters will likely decide on an upcoming ballot amendment on a likely future reduction of property taxes.  

Property taxes are handled by local governments. But a constitutional amendment could force local leaders to alter how much property owners pay in property taxes.  

Mayor Kenneth Welch released the following statement:

“We had a successful first day with the state DOGE team and I want to thank our City team for their efforts on quickly compiling and preparing this requested data ahead of today’s visit. As stated when we first received the request, the City is complying with all DOGE requests and will provide any additional information or clarification as needed. As we continue through this process, our main priority remains inclusive progress for our city, based on our shared values, and moving  forward with clarity, purpose and integrity.”