California Spending $1.1 Million On A Council Nobody Runs And Nobody Attends

California’s state budget set aside $1.1 million for the Fast Food Council despite not having a leader since May and not having the full council meet for the entire year.

California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 1228 in September 2023, establishing a Fast Food Council within the state’s Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) to set an hourly minimum wage for fast food restaurant employees and develop standards, rules and regulations for the fast food industry. However, according to KCRA, the council’s first chairman, Nick Hardeman, resigned on May 22.

According to the DIR’s meeting agenda, the council held only two meetings in 2025, one in January and a second in February, but neither included the full nine members. Records show that at least seven members were in attendance, both in person and via Zoom, listening to testimony to consider a wage increase for fast food workers.

Notably, under AB 1228 the council is required to hold meetings or hearings no less than every six months, and they must be open to the public.

Newsom’s office told the 🏢Daily Caller News Foundation that the administration is reviewing applicants for Hardeman’s former position, with a formal announcement coming once the governor appoints someone new. On the same day as Hardeman’s exit, Newsom appointed him to the California Housing Finance Agency’s Board of Directors, according to KCRA.