California Governor Gavin Newsom's official calendars show 18 non-holiday weekdays in the first four months of the year were marked as having "no official business," according to records obtained by The California Post after a monthslong delay that required legal intervention. The governor's office stated that these entries do not indicate the governor was idle, but rather that no events were pre-scheduled.
During the period from January through April, the calendars also list 53 entries described only as "work time," obscuring the specific tasks or meetings. Newsom's official days typically run about seven hours, from roughly 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., though some days show activity ending earlier or beginning later.
Records indicate that on Feb. 6, for example, the only listed activity was a block labeled "work time" from 2 p.m. to 5:20 p.m. The governor also spent considerable time engaging in activities such as a nationwide book tour for his memoir, "A Young Man in a Hurry," and international travel. He met with world leaders, including German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, as well as executives from various companies and lawmakers.
Newsom's office defended the calendar entries, with a representative stating that the calendars are not exhaustive records of the governor's activities or meetings. "Only meetings and other matters scheduled in advance are reflected on the calendar," the representative said, adding that "'no official business' doesn't mean he wasn't working; it just means he had no pre-scheduled events or meetings."
Despite these clarifications, the sparsity of the official schedule has drawn criticism. Corrin Rankin, chairwoman of the California Republican Party, suggested that Newsom "seems to treat the governor’s office like a part-time gig, spending his limited time pushing failed policies."
In contrast to Newsom's office, neighboring Oregon maintains a public archive of its officials' weekly calendars, and states like Virginia, Iowa, and Utah routinely publish their governors' schedules online.
Some scheduled activities included long hours for events like the State of the State speech, which required more than 19 hours of rehearsal. Newsom also dedicated time to media engagements, including interviews with publications like Vogue and Marie Claire, as well as Bloomberg. His wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, has also been featured in press releases from the governor's office and has been the subject of media profiles.
Other entries reveal meetings with executives from companies such as Procter & Gamble, Stripe, Sprouts Farmers Market, and CommonSpirit Health, alongside meetings with labor leaders and foreign diplomats. Significant portions of the calendar, however, remain redacted, with the administration citing exemptions related to the governor's deliberative process, security, legal privilege, personnel matters, and privacy of potential appointees.