California State Assembly
Coordinates: 38°34′35″N 121°29′36″W / 38.57639°N 121.49333°W
| California State Assembly | |
|---|---|
| California State Legislature | |
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| Type | |
| Type | Lower house |
| Term limits | 3 terms (6 years) |
| New session started | December 6, 2010 |
| Leadership | |
| Speaker of the Assembly | John Pérez, (D) since March 1, 2010 |
| Speaker pro Tempore | Fiona Ma, (D) since March 18, 2010 |
| Majority Leader | Charles Calderon, (D) since March 18, 2010 |
| Minority Leader | Connie Conway, (R) since December 6, 2010 |
| Structure | |
| Members | 80 |
| Political groups | Democratic Party (52) Republican Party (27) Independent (1) |
| Length of term | 2 years |
| Authority | Article IV, California Constitution |
| Salary | $95,291/year + per diem |
| Elections | |
| Last election | November 2, 2010 (80 seats) |
| Next election | November 6, 2012 (80 seats) |
| Redistricting | California Citizens Redistricting Commission |
| Meeting place | |
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| State Assembly Chamber California State Capitol Sacramento, California |
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| Website | |
| California State Assembly | |
The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature. There are 80 members in the Assembly, representing an approximately equal number of constituents, with each district having a population of at least 420,000. Due to the state's large population and relatively small legislature, the Assembly has the largest population per representative ratio of any state legislature lower house and second largest of any legislative lower house in the United States; only the federal U.S. House of Representatives has a larger ratio. Since a ballot initiative in 1990, members of the Assembly are restricted by term limits, confining them to three two-year terms (six years).[1]
The Assembly convenes at the California State Capitol in Sacramento.
Contents |
[edit] Leadership of the Assembly
The Speaker of the Assembly presides over the Assembly in the chief leadership position, controlling the flow of legislation and committee assignments. The Speaker is elected by the majority party caucus, followed by confirmation of the full Assembly on passage of a floor vote. Other Assembly 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 John Pérez (46th–Los Angeles). The Majority Leader is Democrat Charles Calderon (58th–Montebello). The Minority Leader is Republican Connie Conway (34th–Tulare).
[edit] Assembly Chamber
The chamber's green tones are based on the British House of Commons. 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 quotation from him[citation needed] in Latin: legislatorum est iustas leges condere ("It is the duty of legislators to pass just laws"). Almost every decorating element is identical to the Senate Chamber.
[edit] Assembly
[edit] Officers
| Position | Name | Party | District | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Speaker | John Pérez | Democratic | 46th–Los Angeles | |
| Speaker pro tempore | Fiona Ma | Democratic | 12th–San Francisco | |
| Assistant speaker pro tempore | Mike Gatto | Democratic | 43rd–Los Angeles | |
| Majority floor leader | Charles Calderon | Democratic | 58th–Montebello | |
| Assistant majority floor leader | Michael Allen | Democratic | 7th–Santa Rosa | |
| Majority caucus chair | Jerry Hill | Democratic | 19th–San Mateo | |
| Majority whip | Toni Atkins | Democratic | 76th–San Diego | |
| Minority leader | Connie Conway | Republican | 34th–Tulare | |
| Assistant minority floor leader | Curt Hagman | Republican | 60th–Chino Hills | |
| Minority caucus chair | Brian Nestande | Republican | 64th–Palm Desert | |
| Assistant minority leaders | Steve Knight | Republican | 36th–Palmdale | |
| Cameron Smyth | Republican | 38th–Santa Clarita | ||
| Chief minority whips | Bill Berryhill | Republican | 26th–Ceres | |
| Dan Logue | Republican | 3rd–Linda | ||
| Chief Clerk | E. Dotson Wilson | |||
| Sergeant-at-Arms | Ronald Pane | |||
The Chief Clerk and the Sergeant-at-Arms are not members of the Legislature.
[edit] Composition
| Affiliation | Party
(Shading indicates majority caucus)
|
Total | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Independent | Republican | Vacant | ||
| End of previous legislature | 50 | 1 | 27 | 78 | 2 |
| Begin | 52 | 0 | 28 | 80 | 0 |
| January 6, 2011[2] | 27 | 79 | 1 | ||
| May 12, 2011[3] | 28 | 80 | 0 | ||
| March 28, 2012[4] | 1 | 27 | |||
| Latest voting share | 65.0% | 1.2% | 33.8% | ||
[edit] Sessions
See:
- California State Legislature, 2011–2012 session
- California State Legislature, 2009–2010 session
- California State Legislature, 2007–2008 session
- California State Legislature, 2005–2006 session
- California State Legislature, 2003–2004 session
- California State Legislature, 2001–2002 session
- California State Legislature, 1999–2000 session
- California State Legislature, 1997–1998 session
[edit] Seating chart
| * | * | * | * | * | * | * |
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* | * | * | * | * | * | |||
| * | ||||||||||||||||
| Hall | Portantino | * | Silva | Garrick | * | Knight | Conway | * | Calderon | Feuer | * | Lara | Torres | * | Pan | Hill |
| Morrell | Miller | * | Halderman | Cook | * | Jones | Hagman | * | Allen | Gatto | * | Gordon | Furutani | * | Williams | Mendoza |
| Fletcher | Smyth | * | Huffman | Carter | * | Swanson | Eng | * | Solorio | Skinner | * | Bonilla | Mitchell | * | Wagner | Gaines |
| Jeffries | Mansoor | * | Fong | Yamada | * | Brownley | Ma | * | Hernandez | V. M. Perez | * | Valadao | Harkey | * | Hayashi | Galgiani |
| Donnelly | Cedillo | * | Monning | Alejo | * | Grove | Logue | * | Block | Norby | * | Nielsen | Gorell | * | Butler | Lowenthal |
| Atkins | Davis | * | Chesbro | Huber | * | Olsen | Nestande | * | Bradford | Campos | * | Achadjian | Berryhill | * | Wieckowski | Ammiano |
| * | * | * | Perea | Beall | * | Buchanan | J. Pérez | * | Hueso | Blumenfield | * | Fuentes | Dickinson | |||
[edit] Candidate qualifications
To run for Member of the Assembly, the 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 IV, 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.
[edit] Officers information
The Office of the Sergeant at Arms is the division which protects the assemblymen of the California State Assembly. The chief sergeant at arms is the head of this division. This position has existed since December 15, 1849 when Samuel N. Houston became California's first Sergeant at Arms. Official website of the Sergeant at Arms
[edit] See also
- Bill (proposed law)
- California State Assembly districts
- California State Assembly elections, 2010
- List of Speakers of the California State Assembly
- California State Legislature
- Members of the California State Legislature
- California State Senate
- California State Capitol
- California State Capitol Museum
- Districts in California
[edit] References
- ^ "California Constitution; Article 4 Legislative". State of California. http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/.const/.article_4. Retrieved January 21, 2011.
- ^ Republican Ted Gaines (District 4) resigned after his election to the California State Senate
- ^ Republican Beth Gaines sworn in to succeed Gaines
- ^ Republican Nathan Fletcher (District 75) leaves the GOP to become an Independent
[edit] External links
- California State Assembly
- Map of Assembly Districts
- California Legislative District Maps (1849-Present)
- California 2012 Election Calendar
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