Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office said the governor has been mailing cellphones to chief executives of the top 100 California-based companies with his phone number programmed into the contacts since November in an effort to “connect more directly” with business leaders in the state.

“It’s an alternative way to engage with the business engine of California and to listen to their ideas,” said Bob Salladay, a communications advisor to Newsom. “We’re constantly evolving as a state. We’re the innovation state and he wants to hear from business leaders if there are any roadblocks, if there’s anything California can do to continue that success.”

The cellphones, which were first reported by KCRA on Monday, were paid for by the California Protocol Foundation, a nonprofit funded by donations that often pays for events and gubernatorial trips, and did not involve taxpayer funds.

The governor’s private conversations are typically shielded from public record requests under California law, and communicating over the cellphones does not offer any additional ability to skirt disclosure rules.

Many people in and around Newsom’s political and business orbits have his cellphone number. It’s not unusual for the governor to receive and respond to texts from a wide host of senders.

Though many corporate chief executives probably did not need the governor to send a phone in order to reach him, his aides described his outreach as a gesture to get the attention of business leaders and show that he’s interested in their experience in California.

The governor’s decision to begin sending the phones appears to have started around the same time he launched a “jobs first tour” around the state to showcase the work of leaders from labor, business, local government, education and environmental justice groups and community organizations to establish regional and statewide economic development plans.

Newsom has also leaned on the private sector to raise money for and support Los Angeles wildfire recovery through an initiative led by Magic Johnson, Dodgers Chairman Mark Walter and 2028 Olympics organizer Casey Wasserman.

“Some CEOs have been surprised,” Salladay said. “Others we haven’t heard from yet and we’re heard from some who have communicated with the governor. It’s about information gathering about businesses in California and how they’re doing.”