California Fast Food Council Commands a Budget of $1.1 Million and Does Nothing For Most of 2025

As of December 2025, the California Fast Food Council failed to hold a meeting for most of 2025. The last meeting was held in February 2025. This is the same Fast Food Council that has cost the state more than $1 Million.

Initially, the Council was meant to monitor and establish standards for California’s expansive fast food industry. In particular, the Council was tasked with the job of establishing minimum wages, standards for working conditions, and standards for working hours. The law establishing the Council required it to meet at least every six months and all meetings were to be open to the public. Clearly, it failed to meet on or before August of 2025.

In 2024, only about half of the nine Council members met a total of five times. As of December of 2025, the Council has yet to hold a meeting with all nine Council Members present. This is disappointing considering the massive impact the creation of this Council and the corresponding minimum wage hikes set by this Council has had on the fast food industry. Nevertheless, it appears that the Council is not very active, nor does it justify its massive $1 Million budget.

Most fast food managers and owners will recall that this Council set the minimum wage for most fast food workers to an impressive $20 an hour nearly overnight. Unfortunately, this has resulted in most fast food employers and business owners experiencing an increase in the cost of operating and has forced them to raise prices to balance these skyrocketing expenses. Clearly, the Fast Food Council has had an enormous impact on fast food employers and owners.

Unfortunately, the dormant Fast Food Council will have the power to establish California’s fast food industry’s wages, hours, and working standards until at least January 1, 2029. Considering its massive budget of $1 Million and the fact that its decisions have had a major impact on California’s fast food employers, business owners, and employees, it would nice to see this Council review the impact of its recent drastic wage hikes and hold more public meetings so that we may hear the public’s take on such drastic wage hikes. Seeing this Council lay dormant for so long and fail to hold its required meetings is a massive disappointment.