Reports

The California Association of County Veterans Service Officers (CACVSO) is an organization of professional veterans’ advocates. In California, as well as other states, County Veterans Service Officers (CVSOs) play a critical role in the veterans’ advocacy system and are often the initial contact in the community for veterans’ services. Through CVSOs, the CACVSO is committed to California counties to provide a vital and efficient system of services and advocacy to veterans, their dependents and survivors.

The California Research Bureau at the California State Library produced this report with U.S. Department of Defense funding at the request of the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research and the Governor’s Military Council. California is home to the nation’s largest concentration of military personnel and other national security activity. Some 162,000 active duty military personnel and an additional 56,000 reservists and National Guard are stationed at more than 30 military installations across California. About 1.8 million veterans call California home. National security agencies employ an additional 122,000 civilians in California. In fiscal year 2021, military and other national security activity in the state generated an estimated $158.2 billion in economic activity, approximately 4.7% of California’s economy.