FILE – The California State Capitol on July 17, 2022, in Sacramento.
Filings are accepted, rejected, or forwarded to another department. Letters assure me that the process is almost finished, but then other letters come with new regulations and requirements. A recorded message instructs me to leave a voice mail; nobody calls back.GOV. NEWSOM ANNOUNCES $32 BILLION BUDGET DEFICIT, $10 BILLION MORE THAN PREVIOUSLY ESTIMATED
What could the reasons for this be? First, garden-variety bureaucratic incompetence. California is a vast state with a sprawling, insulated public sector. My mother spent her career working as an attorney for the state and concluded, after decades of service, that the agencies actively undermined their stated missions and harmed the quality of life for residents.