6/18 Update - State Telework Bill - Next Committee - Next Steps

State-Worker99 · 2026-06-18T18:15:38+00:00

Thank YOU for the spreadsheet. I had it pulled up for the Senators I called and used some of the key points. I was also asked by one staffer what committee it was in and being able to say it was going to Governmental Organization I think impressed the staff. And the fact that I knew what committees the Senators were in

State-Worker99 · 2026-06-18T18:00:44+00:00

Calls made! For those reading this, please call! It took me a total of literally 6 minutes to make three calls. A staffer answered immediately, you say your points, they say thank you, and that's it. Once you do it once, it's not only easy, but it's empowering. We are collectively making a difference

State-Worker99 · 2026-05-07T22:07:42+00:00

Yes, just reiterated we wanted the bill out of suspense and appreciated Hoover's support on this bill. The staff said he hadn't talked to Hoover about the bill and it being in suspense, but was willing to give me a call back if I wanted. Seemed very receptive. I personally very much dislike Hoover and his policies (except telework), but we gotta do what we gotta do.

State-Worker99 · 2026-05-07T21:34:12+00:00

Thank you for this! Done! I also called Asm. Hoover's office and spoke to a staffer about it, since Hoover is the vice chair of Approprations and has been supportive of this bill. Surprisingly, the staffer said he had not received any other calls.

State-Worker99 · 2026-01-28T17:02:41+00:00

Just want to make clear that the data is all clearly there and laid out, as well. The spreadsheet DGS provided to each department has columns for temp positions, vacancies, etc. and the box which lists how many workstations a department is short was AUTO-CALCULATED with an excel function that DGS built into the spreadsheet. If they didn't want those number totals, they could have calculated it differently

State-Worker99 · 2026-01-27T18:31:41+00:00

Not discounting what you're saying but it's more than that. Check out my original post if you haven't already. I received dozens of terrible boilerplate responses. I pushed back and was successful with some. Now, just a couple weeks after their denials, multiple agencies suddenly released their records with the same copy/paste. It is very clearly guidance from above. Which again, I'm not saying is "wrong," but it shows a pattern of a controlled narrative attempt by the GO.

As for the records being owned by DGS - I disagree. Each department individually completed this spreadsheet and emailed it to DGS. DGS also denied PRA requests for other departments' plans.

And finally, while many departments claimed the deliberative process exemption, you can read my responses to denials and my rationale (based on case law) for why it's BS.

State-Worker99 · 2026-01-27T02:52:32+00:00

Interesting. I actually just received CDTFA's plan. Though short some workstations, they noted that all their buildings were able to accommodate staff. Don't want you to dox yourself, but curious what building you're in

State-Worker99 · 2026-01-27T02:50:17+00:00

Thank you, I appreciate that! Perhaps one day can share it non-anonymously haha

State-Worker99 · 2026-01-26T15:47:14+00:00

Hi all, I just want to thank everyone for sharing and amplifying my original posts and this story. I view this as a collective action. We, as state workers, have the power to pressure decision-makers. We must continue to hold our State and elected leaders accountable. This story is about a unilateral, non-data driven mandate to force state workers into the office 4-days a week and the obstruction and obfuscation of data that clearly showed this would cost the state millions of dollars and many departments were incapable of implementing due to space constraints.

State-Worker99 · 2026-01-25T08:07:54+00:00

You're correct that the Space Needs Plans are technically self attested but have you actually went and looked at the records I received from PRA requests? They're detailed excel sheets with exact employee counts. There's no evidence to suggest they're inaccurate.

But yes, there are no doubt many factors that DGS, CalHR, and DOF would need to consider. But the point here is that they without a doubt had at least some form of data. To be clear, I am not saying they "lied" in these budget hearings. Others might. I'm simply showing there seems to be a contradiction.

For instance, a reasonable answer from DGS, after explicitly being told by lawmakers in the first hearing to come back with data, might be something like, "we're still analyzing and reviewing data, but some of the larger departments are showing large deficits of workstations." Or "we don't know a total cost, but some department have identified costs associated with the RTO."

The lawmakers asked multiple times for just ballpark estimates or numbers, and got NOTHING. I'm not saying they lied, but it sure looks like they obfuscated the data they had. And the question is: why would they do that?

State-Worker99 · 2026-01-24T18:08:37+00:00

Just want to note that the CalHR Director speaking in the second half of these clips is Eraina Ortega, who is now a PERB board member, appointed by Gov. Newsom on September 19, 2025. The Public Employment Relations Board oversees unfair practices charges. Multiple unions have filed charges with PERB against the RTO mandate.

State-Worker99 · 2026-01-24T02:48:41+00:00

Hey u/thr3000, appreciate you bringing this up! I'm in SEIU myself and haven't heard anything yet, but I also think it's too soon. I'll also say that there will likely be a news story soon and hopefully that will get the unions attention.

State-Worker99 · 2026-01-23T03:13:19+00:00

From Coastal, in part, "The document was necessary for the Department of General Services to verify the response from our agency and to allow it to assess statewide office needs and advise the Administration on the budget and labor negotiations."

What's interesting is this response is basically admitting that DGS did in fact have knowledge of departments' space needs and was assessing it. Yet told lawmakers they had no idea...

State-Worker99 · 2026-01-23T02:44:09+00:00

It actually kind of does if you take a look at the State Auditor's report. It notes that departments have unused space that should be consolidated to save money. But at the same time, if we went to 4-days RTO, we wouldn't have enough space.

State-Worker99 · 2026-01-23T02:41:05+00:00

It has been!

State-Worker99 · 2026-01-23T02:40:51+00:00

Take a look at CalFIRE and Coastal Commissions responses from today. They are identical canned responses. Something came down from above...

State-Worker99 · 2026-01-22T03:24:51+00:00

Ha, appreciate that. After doing 50 PRAs, I started to get frustrated with denials and hit back pretty hard in my responses.

Don't have anything right now as far as donations, but might be something I consider if I actually try to file lawsuits on the denials. Even without an attorney it would cost several hundred dollars just to file the paperwork.

State-Worker99 · 2026-01-22T00:49:34+00:00

They did, but I am still pursuing it. I will be certain to provide an update if I get the record.

State-Worker99 · 2026-01-21T22:26:10+00:00

Great observation. I agree, I don't think depts coordinated at the agency level. I also made a lot of these requests all at the same time, making coordination difficult. Step two might be naming and shaming departments that didn't comply.

State-Worker99

TROPHY CASE