The California State Capitol building in Sacramento, California, U.S., on Wednesday, July 7, 2021. California has reinstated a mask mandate for all lawmakers and employees at the state capitol regardless of vaccination status following an outbreak of nine Covid-19 cases there, reported the San Francisco Chronicle. Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images
A new program dubbed "Engaged California" aiming to give the public a greater voice in government is launching soon, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Sunday morning.
Described as an exercise in "deliberative democracy," the program is designed to help the public influence and inform government actions such as the ongoing Los Angeles firestorm rebuilding and recovery, the governor's office said.
"Engaged California is a new program that will bring together community voices and viewpoints supported by digital platforms -- empowering Californians to help inform policy decisions and program design," according to the announcement.
The program will encourage participation from Californians across all walks of life to interact with each other "to find common ground and help set priorities for state government action," the news release said. The first discussions will focus on the Los Angeles firestorms.
Those who wish to participate in the program can start by visiting engaged.ca.gov and signing up to receive email alerts. A confirmation email is sent as soon as a participant signs up.
The process for participating was described on the website as follows:
Once we go live:
- We will open a topic to discuss.
- Participants will get an invitation to join.
- You will come together in a virtual space with others to discuss the topic over a set period of time.
- We will protect your privacy, and reveal no names.
- We will share key findings with leaders in state government - and you.
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