[In] his six years in the governor’s office, Newsom has steadily guided California’s government to expand its mission and scope: launching flashy initiatives, creating new departments and offering more services to more people, even during periods of deficit. The number of employees per capita — a measurement of the size of state government compared to the population it serves — has reached its highest level in more than five decades of tracking by the state Finance Department.
Even Newsom’s own office has more than doubled in size. At the end of 2024, the governor’s office employed 381 people, including an expanded unit dedicated to “land use and climate innovation,” according to payroll data provided by the State Controller’s Office, compared to 150 at the end of 2018, before Newsom was sworn in.
