WASHINGTON, D.C. — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth unveiled a sweeping initiative to reduce waste across the Department of Defense (DOD), announcing $5.1 billion in cuts to nonessential contracts and services. The announcement, made Thursday, April 10, marks a significant phase in the department’s cost-cutting efforts under the Defense Department’s Government Efficiency (DOGE) initiative.
“That’s with a ‘B’; $5.1 billion in DOD contracts for ancillary things like consulting and other nonessential services,” Hegseth said in a video statement, emphasizing the need to redirect funds to core defense priorities.
The memorandum outlines detailed reductions, including $1.8 billion in consulting contracts awarded by the Defense Health Agency and $1.4 billion in enterprise cloud IT services. Additional cuts include a $500 million Navy business process consulting contract and a duplicative $500 million IT help desk services contract at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.
Highlighting non-priority initiatives, Hegseth stated that the department has eliminated 11 contracts addressing diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), climate change, and COVID-19 response activities. “We are committed to rooting out DEI — root and branch — throughout this department … [And] I’m going to keep looking,” he added.
Academic funding is also under review, with over $500 million in financial support paused for two universities accused of tolerating antisemitism and promoting divisive DEI programs. These cuts follow $70 million in funding suspensions at three other universities announced in recent weeks.
Thursday’s announcement builds on Hegseth’s March 20 disclosure of $580 million in program cuts, raising the cumulative total of identified savings under the DOGE initiative to nearly $6 billion. Hegseth first launched DOGE efforts in February with the goal of eliminating excess spending and reallocating resources to enhance warfighting capabilities.
“We’re excited to make these cuts on behalf of you, the taxpayer and the warfighters here at the department,” Hegseth said, acknowledging the efforts of DOGE and others involved in identifying inefficiencies.
These measures underscore the department’s commitment to fiscal responsibility and its broader push to strengthen the United States’ defense posture through targeted, efficient resource management.
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