“Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery”
When President Donald Trump tasked Elon Musk with rooting out fraud, waste, and/or abuse in the federal government through the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Americans were quite shocked to learn that almost 90% of federal office space in Washington DC was “going to waste.”
According to DOGE, “federal government agencies are using, on average, just 12% of the space in their DC headquarters,” citing the Department of Agriculture as an example with just 456 workers each day in a space intended for 7,400.
Federal government agencies are using, on average, just 12% of the space in their DC headquarters. The Department of Agriculture, with space for more than 7,400 people, averaged 456 workers each day (6% occupancy).
Why are American taxpayer dollars being spent to maintain empty… pic.twitter.com/qqhlqb3gRT
— Department of Government Efficiency (@DOGE) November 21, 2024
And according to Musk’s original DOGE partner Vivek Ramaswamy, who is now running for Ohio governor, these buildings cost the US taxpayer around $15 billion per year. Ramaswamy states there are 7,967 vacant buildings and the furniture costs alone add up to “billions” in additional waste.
Most federal workers don’t physically show up, yet the cost of maintaining & providing energy for govt office buildings is $15BN/year (not counting billions more spent on office furnishings). The government owns 7,967 vacant buildings. This is nuts. Sounds like a job for DOGE.
— Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) November 23, 2024
As the DOGE team scours over billions of dollars in government contracts and grants while rooting out federal employees with his “What did you do last week?” emails, part I and part II, California seems to following suit. At least to some extent.
Governor Gavin Newsom issued Executive Order N-22-25, which would implement a “hybrid telework” policy, requiring a minimum of four in-person work days each week. Agencies must submit plans to accommodate this shift by April 1, 2025 with implementation requirements by July 1, 2025.
California employs roughly 224,000 full-time throughout the state, including in Medi-Cal, drivers licenses and registrations, fire preparedness, emergency response to public safety, education, and environmental protection. Prior to COVID-19, those employees had a “baseline expectation of working in-person five days a week.” Newom’s order states that, “based on experience and research…benefits of in-person work…include enhanced collaboration, cohesion, creativity, and communication, improved opportunities for mentorship, and improved supervision and accountability.”
As of 2024, California in $270 billion in debt, ballooning out to $500 billion when factoring in local government. The state’s debt ratio (liabilities to assets and revenue) is 106% as of 2022, making it the fifth-worst in the nation, according to Reason.
The budget for 2025 in California is running a $2 billion deficit but could inflate to “$20-30 billion in deficit growth for each of the following three years if no more cuts are made now,” according to the California Globe.
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