California State Assembly

The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature, the upper house being the California State Senate. The Assembly convenes, along with the State Senate, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento.

California State Assembly
California State Legislature
Type
Type
Term limits
6 terms (12 years)
History
New session started
December 7, 2020
Leadership
Speaker
Anthony Rendon (D)
since March 7, 2016
Speaker pro tempore
Kevin Mullin (D)
since December 1, 2014
Majority Leader
Eloise Reyes (D)
since December 7, 2020
Minority Leader
James Gallagher (R)
since February 8, 2022
Structure
Seats80
Political groups
Majority
  Democratic (60)

Minority

  Republican (19)
  Independent (1)
Length of term
2 years
AuthorityArticle 4, California Constitution
Salary$114,877/year + $211 per diem
Elections
Nonpartisan blanket primary
Last election
November 3, 2020
Next election
November 8, 2022
RedistrictingCalifornia Citizens Redistricting Commission
Motto
Legislatorum est justas leges condere
("It is the duty of legislators to enact just laws.")
Meeting place
State Assembly Chamber
California State Capitol
Sacramento, California
Website
California State Assembly

The Assembly consists of 80 members, with each member representing at least 465,000 people. Due to a combination of the state's large population and a legislature that has not been expanded since the ratification of the 1879 Constitution,[1] the Assembly has the largest population-per-representative ratio of any state lower house and second largest of any legislative lower house in the United States after the federal House of Representatives.

Members of the California State Assembly are generally referred to using the titles Assemblyman (for men), Assemblywoman (for women), or Assemblymember (gender-neutral). In the current legislative session, Democrats enjoy a three-fourths supermajority of 60 seats, while Republicans control a minority of 19 seats and Independents hold 1 seat.

Leadership

The Speaker presides over the State Assembly in the chief leadership position, controlling the flow of legislation and committee assignments. The Speaker is nominated by the caucus of the majority party and elected by the full Assembly. Other leaders, such as the majority and minority leaders, are elected by their respective party caucuses according to each party's strength in the chamber.

The current Speaker is Democrat Anthony Rendon (63rd–Lakewood). The majority leader is Democrat Eloise Reyes (47th–Grand Terrace), while the minority leader is Republican James Gallagher (3rd–Yuba City).[2]

Terms of office

As a result of Proposition 140 in 1990 and Proposition 28 in 2012, members elected to the Legislature prior to 2012 are restricted by term limits to three two-year terms (six years), while those elected in or after 2012 are allowed to serve 12 years in the legislature in any combination of four-year State Senate or two-year State Assembly terms.[3]

Every two years, all 80 seats in the Assembly are subject to election. This is in contrast to the State Senate, in which only half of its 40 seats are subject to election every two years.

Meeting chamber

The chamber's green tones are based on the House of Commons of the United Kingdom. The dais rests along a wall shaped like an "E", with its central projection housing the rostrum. Along the cornice appears a portrait of Abraham Lincoln and a Latin quotation: legislatorum est justas leges condere ("It is the duty of legislators to pass just laws"). Almost every decorating element is identical to the Senate Chamber.

Candidate qualifications

To run for the Assembly, a candidate must be a United States citizen and a registered voter in the district at the time nomination papers are issued, and may not have served three terms in the State Assembly since November 6, 1990. According to Article 4, Section 2(c) of the California Constitution, the candidate must have one year of residency in the legislative district and California residency for three years.[4]

Employees

The chief clerk of the Assembly, a position that has existed since the Assembly's creation, is responsible for many administrative duties. The chief clerk is the custodian of all Assembly bills and records and publishes the Assembly Daily Journal, the minutes of floor sessions, as well as the Assembly Daily File (the Assembly agenda). The chief clerk is the Assembly's parliamentarian, and in this capacity gives advice to the presiding officer on matters of parliamentary procedure. The chief clerk is also responsible for engrossing and enrolling of measures, and the transmitting passed legislation to the governor.[5]

The Assembly also holds the position of chaplain, a position that has existed in both houses since the first legislative session back in 1850. Currently, the chaplain of the Assembly is Imam Mohammad Yasir Khan, the first chaplain historically that practices Islam.

The position of sergeant-at-arms of the Assembly has existed since 1849; Samuel N. Houston was the first to hold this post, overseeing one deputy. The sergeant-at-arms is mostly tasked with law enforcement duties, but customarily also has a ceremonial and protocol role. Today, some fifty employees are part of the Assembly Sergeant-at-Arms Office.[6]

Current session

Composition

60 1 19
Democratic Ind Republican
Affiliation Party
(Shading indicates majority caucus)
Total
Democratic Republican Independent Vacant
End of previous legislature 61 17 1 79 1
Begin 60 19 1 80 0
Jan. 29, 2021 59 79 1
Mar. 11, 2021 58 78 2
Apr. 19, 2021 59 79 1
Apr. 23, 2021 58 78 2
May 28, 2021 59 79 1
Sep. 7, 2021 60 80 0
Oct. 31, 2021 59 79 1
Dec. 10, 2021 58 78 2
Dec. 31, 2021 57 77 3
Jan. 5, 2021 56 76 4
Feb. 1, 2021 55 75 5
Feb. 22, 2021 56 76 4
Apr. 5, 2022 57 77 3
May 3, 2022 58 78 2
Jun. 15, 2022 59 79 1
Jun. 20, 2022 60 80 0
Latest voting share 75% 24% 1%

Past composition of the Assembly

Officers

Position Name Party District
Speaker Anthony Rendon Democratic 63rd–Lakewood
Speaker pro tempore Kevin Mullin Democratic 22nd–South San Francisco
Majority leader Eloise Reyes Democratic 47th–Grand Terrace
Assistant majority leader Chris Ward Democratic 78th–San Diego
Democratic caucus chair Mike Gipson Democratic 64th–Carson
Republican leader James Gallagher Republican 3rd–Yuba City
Republican floor leader Heath Flora Republican 12th–Ripon
Republican chief whip Phillip Chen Republican 55th–Yorba Linda
Republican whip Devon Mathis Republican 26th–Visalia
Chief Clerk Sue Parker
Chief Sergeant-at-Arms Alisa Buckley
Chaplain Imam Mohammad Yasir Khan (Al Misbaah)

The Chief Clerk, the Chief Sergeant-at-Arms, and the Chaplains are not members of the Legislature.

Members

District Name Party Residence First elected Term limited Notes
1 Megan Dahle Republican Bieber 2019 2030
2 Jim Wood Democratic Santa Rosa 2014 2026
3 James Gallagher Republican Yuba City 2014 2026 Minority leader since February 8, 2022
4 Cecilia Aguiar-Curry Democratic Winters 2016 2028
5 Frank Bigelow Republican O'Neals 2012 2024
6 Kevin Kiley Republican Rocklin 2016 2028
7 Kevin McCarty Democratic Sacramento 2014 2026
8 Ken Cooley Democratic Rancho Cordova 2012 2024
9 Jim Cooper Democratic Elk Grove 2014 2026
10 Marc Levine Democratic Greenbrae 2012 2024
11 Lori Wilson Democratic Suisun City 2022 2034
12 Heath Flora Republican Ripon 2016 2028
13 Carlos Villapudua Democratic Stockton 2020 2032
14 Tim Grayson Democratic Concord 2016 2028
15 Buffy Wicks Democratic Oakland 2018 2030
16 Rebecca Bauer-Kahan Democratic Orinda 2018 2030
17 Matt Haney Democratic San Francisco 2022 2034
18 Mia Bonta Democratic Alameda 2021 2032
19 Phil Ting Democratic San Francisco 2012 2024
20 Bill Quirk Democratic Hayward 2012 2024
21 Adam Gray Democratic Merced 2012 2024
22 Kevin Mullin Democratic South San Francisco 2012 2024
23 Jim Patterson Republican Fresno 2012 2024
24 Marc Berman Democratic Menlo Park 2016 2028
25 Alex Lee Democratic San Jose 2020 2032
26 Devon Mathis Republican Visalia 2014 2026
27 Ash Kalra Democratic San Jose 2016 2028
28 Evan Low Democratic Sunnyvale 2014 2026
29 Mark Stone Democratic Scotts Valley 2012 2024
30 Robert Rivas Democratic Hollister 2018 2030
31 Joaquin Arambula Democratic Fresno 2016 2028
32 Rudy Salas Democratic Bakersfield 2012 2024
33 Thurston Smith Republican Hesperia 2020 2032
34 Vince Fong Republican Bakersfield 2016 2028
35 Jordan Cunningham Republican Paso Robles 2016 2028
36 Tom Lackey Republican Palmdale 2014 2026
37 Steve Bennett Democratic Ojai 2020 2032
38 Suzette Martinez Valladares Republican Santa Clarita 2020 2032
39 Luz Rivas Democratic North Hollywood 2018 2030
40 James Ramos Democratic Highland 2018 2030
41 Chris Holden Democratic Pasadena 2012 2024
42 Chad Mayes Independent Rancho Mirage 2014 2026 Changed party affiliation on December 6, 2019[7]
43 Laura Friedman Democratic Glendale 2016 2028
44 Jacqui Irwin Democratic Thousand Oaks 2014 2026
45 Jesse Gabriel Democratic Encino 2018 2030
46 Adrin Nazarian Democratic Sherman Oaks 2012 2024
47 Eloise Reyes Democratic Colton 2016 2028 Majority Leader
48 Blanca Rubio Democratic Baldwin Park 2016 2028
49 Mike Fong Democratic Alhambra 2022 2034
50 Richard Bloom Democratic Santa Monica 2012 2024
51 Wendy Carrillo Democratic Los Angeles 2017 2030
52 Freddie Rodriguez Democratic Pomona 2013 2024
53 Miguel Santiago Democratic Los Angeles 2014 2026
54 Isaac Bryan Democratic Los Angeles 2021 2032
55 Phillip Chen Republican Yorba Linda 2016 2028
56 Eduardo Garcia Democratic Coachella 2014 2026
57 Lisa Calderon Democratic Whittier 2020 2032
58 Cristina Garcia Democratic Bell Gardens 2012 2024
59 Reggie Jones-Sawyer Democratic Los Angeles 2012 2024
60 Sabrina Cervantes Democratic Corona 2016 2028
61 Jose Medina Democratic Riverside 2012 2024
62 Tina McKinnor Democratic Hawthorne 2022 2034
63 Anthony Rendon Democratic Lakewood 2012 2024 Speaker
64 Mike Gipson Democratic Carson 2014 2026
65 Sharon Quirk-Silva Democratic Fullerton 2016 2026 Previously served from 2012 to 2014.
66 Al Muratsuchi Democratic Rolling Hills Estates 2016 2026 Previously served from 2012 to 2014.
67 Kelly Seyarto Republican Murrieta 2020 2032
68 Steven Choi Republican Irvine 2016 2028
69 Tom Daly Democratic Anaheim 2012 2024
70 Patrick O'Donnell Democratic Long Beach 2014 2026
71 Randy Voepel Republican Santee 2016 2028
72 Janet Nguyen Republican Huntington Beach 2020 2028 Previously served in the Senate from 2014 to 2018
73 Laurie Davies Republican Laguna Niguel 2020 2032
74 Cottie Petrie-Norris Democratic Irvine 2018 2030
75 Marie Waldron Republican Valley Center 2012 2024 Minority Leader from November 8, 2018, to February 8, 2022
76 Tasha Boerner Horvath Democratic Encinitas 2018 2030
77 Brian Maienschein Democratic San Diego 2012 2024 Changed party affiliation on January 24, 2019[8][9]
78 Chris Ward Democratic San Diego 2020 2032
79 Akilah Weber Democratic La Mesa 2021 2032
80 David Alvarez Democratic San Diego 2022 2034
  • elected in a special election

Seating chart

Speaker
Rendon
Choi Chen Valladares Lackey Davies Gallagher Reyes Bonta Calderon Holden Petrie-Norris Irwin
Kiley V. Fong Santiago Cooper Smith Flora Bauer-Kahan Gipson Bloom Lee Nazarian Levine
Bigelow Dahle Patterson Waldron Grayson Daly Ting Gray Maienschein McCarty Seyarto Nguyen
Boerner Horvath Haney Wood Cooley Quirk-Silva L. Rivas Friedman Bennett Low M. Fong Cunningham Mayes
Medina Rodriguez McKinnor Jones-Sawyer R. Rivas Kalra Rubio Weber Muratsuchi Villapudua Arambula Ramos
Alvarez Carrillo Salas Quirk O'Donnell Wicks Aguiar-Curry C. Garcia Cervantes Wilson Mathis Voepel
Berman Ward E. Garcia Rendon Mullin Gabriel Bryan Stone

Committees

Current committees, chairs and vice chairs include:[10]

CommitteeChairVice Chair
Accountability and Administrative Review Cottie Petrie-Norris (D)Jim Patterson (R)
Aging and Long-Term Care Adrin Nazarian (D)Randy Voepel (R)
Agriculture Robert Rivas (D)Devon Mathis (R)
Appropriations Chris Holden (D)Frank Bigelow (R)
Arts, Entertainment, Sports, Tourism, & Internet Media Tasha Boerner Horvath (D)Suzette Martinez Valladares (R)
Banking and Finance Tim Grayson (D)Phillip Chen (R)
Budget Phil Ting (D)Vince Fong (R)
Business and Professions Marc Berman (D)Heath Flora (R)
Communications and Conveyance Sharon Quirk-Silva (D)Jim Patterson (R)
Education Patrick O'Donnell (D)Megan Dahle (R)
Elections Isaac Bryan (D)Kelly Seyarto (R)
Emergency Management Freddie Rodriguez (D)Kelly Seyarto (R)
Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials Bill Quirk (D)Thurston Smith (R)
Governmental Organization Miguel Santiago (D)Frank Bigelow (R)
Health Jim Wood (D)Chad Mayes (I)
Higher Education Jose Medina (D)Steven Choi (R)
Housing and Community Development Buffy Wicks (D)Kelly Seyarto (R)
Human Services Lisa Calderon (D)Laurie Davies (R)
Insurance Tom Daly (D)Chad Mayes (I)
Jobs, Economic Development, and the Economy Sabrina Cervantes (D)Jordan Cunningham (R)
Judiciary Mark Stone (D)James Gallagher (R)
Labor and Employment Ash Kalra (D)Heath Flora (R)
Local Government Cecilia Aguiar-Curry (D)Tom Lackey (R)
Military and Veterans Affairs Jacqui Irwin (D)Randy Voepel (R)
Natural Resources Luz Rivas (D)Heath Flora (R)
Privacy and Consumer Protection Jesse Gabriel (D)Kevin Kiley (R)
Public Employment and Retirement Jim Cooper (D)Randy Voepel (R)
Public Safety Reggie Jones-Sawyer (D)Tom Lackey (R)
Revenue and Taxation Autumn Burke (D)Janet Nguyen (R)
Rules Ken Cooley (D)Jordan Cunningham (R)
Transportation Laura Friedman (D)Vince Fong (R)
Utilities and Energy Eduardo Garcia (D)Jim Patterson (R)
Water, Parks, and Wildlife Rebecca Bauer-Kahan (D)Megan Dahle (R)

Recent sessions

  • California State Legislature, 1997–98 session
  • California State Legislature, 1999–2000 session
  • California State Legislature, 2001–02 session
  • California State Legislature, 2003–04 session
  • California State Legislature, 2005–06 session
  • California State Legislature, 2007–08 session
  • California State Legislature, 2009–10 session
  • California State Legislature, 2011–12 session
  • California State Legislature, 2013–14 session
  • California State Legislature, 2015–16 session
  • California State Legislature, 2017–18 session
  • California State Legislature, 2019–20 session
  • California State Legislature, 2021–22 session

See also

References

  1. "California Constitution of 1879, prior to any amendments" (PDF). California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
  2. "Officers of the California State Assembly | Assembly Internet". assembly.ca.gov. Retrieved February 8, 2022.
  3. "California Constitution Article IV; Legislative". California Office of Legislative Counsel. Archived from the original on February 23, 2019. Retrieved February 23, 2019.
  4. "California Constitution Article IV § 2". California Office of Legislative Counsel. Retrieved February 23, 2019.
  5. About Us, Office of the Chief Clerk, California State Assembly.
  6. History Archived June 16, 2018, at the Wayback Machine, Sergeant-at-Arms Office, California State Assembly.
  7. "Inland Assemblyman Chad Mayes leaves GOP, will seek re-election as independent". Press Enterprise. December 6, 2019. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  8. "California Republican Party gets even smaller: A GOP lawmaker defects to the Democrats". The Sacramento Bee. January 24, 2019.
  9. "Assemblyman Brian Maienschein Switches Parties, From Republican to Democrat". KNSD (NBC San Diego). January 24, 2019.
  10. "Committees". January 6, 2022. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
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