California Writes Public Deliberation Into Law – Ash Center
Engaged California is the nation’s first state-run deliberation program, and a new law aims to make it last. By: Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation, Allen Lab: Technology & Democracy Democracy and AI In January 2025, the Eaton and Palisades fires burned through the Los Angeles suburbs of Altadena and Pacific Palisades. By mid-February, fires across the Los Angeles metropolitan area had destroyed roughly 16,000 structures and killed 29 people. With years of rebuilding suddenly on the horizon, thousands of residents now had a uniquely direct stake in their government’s next steps. Engaged California, the nation’s first state-run deliberative program, helped respond to the moment. The program was born into a world in which fewer than one in four Americans vote in local mayoral elections, and only 9 percent attend local public meetings. Surveys consistently show that Americans want a voice in their democracy but feel the system is inaccessible and unimpactful, something researchers call t