The Payroll Party.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(EDITORIALS)

California: The state's bureaucracy has experienced a boom in growth. That's the sort of business that can happen when the watchdogs sleep.

California has long been known as a hotbed of national political trends. But in recent years it's been more of a nonstop cautionary tale. It's as if news from the Golden State should come with a warning label: Kids, don't try this in your state.

Everybody knows about the state's energy mess. Many have also heard about Gov. Gray Davis' hearty appetite for campaign funds. This has led to some red-faced moments, such as the revelation that the state had signed a no-bid, $95 million contract with Oracle Corp., a Davis campaign contributor. Then there was the 34%, five-year pay hike Davis gave the prison guard union, which has given him $2.6 million since 1998 and endorsed him for re-election.

Less noted is the sheer growth in state government; yet it might be the most serious news of all for taxpayers. When Davis took over in early 1999, the state had 282,860 on payroll, or 8.6 employees per 1,000 residents. Three years later, it had added 42,704 positions. The new total was 325,564, or 9.4 per 1,000. That was a hike of 15%, or 9% per capita, when population rose just 6%.

Now that the recession has plunged the state deep in the red, Davis has declared a hiring freeze. But don't get ...