SACRAMENTO, Calif. —

California's first-in-the-nation Fast Food Council, which was created to bargain the working conditions and wages for fast food workers across the state, has quietly been without a leader since May.

Nick Hardeman, the council's first chairman, resigned on May 22, Gov. Gavin Newsom's office confirmed Tuesday. The governor's spokesman Izzy Gardon told KCRA 3 that Newsom appointed Hardeman to the California Housing Finance Agency's Board of Directors the same day he resigned from the council.

(Previous coverage above: Takeaways from California's second fast food council meeting.)

Hardeman's absence was not publicly noticeable, because the council has not met since February. Meeting records show Hardeman attended two subcommittee meetings in January and February where

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