Robin Opsahl covers the state legislature and politics for Iowa Capital Dispatch, where this article first appeared.

Governor Kim Reynolds signed into law on October 2 a measure changing a state’s economic development program that could provide nearly $1.4 billion in tax incentives for a $15 billion steel mill project planned in southeast Iowa.

“Today, we advance the most consequential economic development project ever to come to our state,” Reynolds said.

The governor signed House File 2801 just hours after lawmakers approved the proposal during a special session, convened for the sole purpose of considering the legislation. The Iowa House approved the bill in a 75-17 vote, and the Senate approved the bill in a 28-19 vote. The proposal would modify the state’s Major Economic Growth Attraction (MEGA) program to include further incentives for businesses within rural areas, a targeted change to benefit the Mesabi Metallics project planned in Lee County.

U.S. Senator Joni Ernst will be a leading Congressional partner of President-elect Donald Trump’s effort to drastically cut federal spending. On November 22 her office “announced the founding of the Senate DOGE Caucus, which will work hand in hand with the Trump administration’s recently formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to identify and eliminate government waste.”

That “department” is actually a non-governmental advisory body, co-led by Trump’s billionaire buddy Elon Musk and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy. Staying outside the government allows DOGE to operate without Congressional authorization, and avoid federal rules on transparency and conflicts of interest.

In recent days, Ernst shared her spending cut proposals with Ramaswamy and traveled to Florida to meet with Trump, Musk, and others in the incoming administration.

Going all in on DOGE is a risky strategy.