Biography
On December 4th, 2006 Alex Padilla was sworn in as a member of the California State Senate representing the 20th District. For his first two years, Padilla served on the powerful Senate Rules Committee which confirms gubernatorial appointments and refers all bills in the Senate. In December 2008, Senator Padilla was named Chair of the Senate Energy, Utilities and Communications Committee. The committee hears all bills relating to utilities, energy companies, alternative energy development and conservation, and communications development and technology.
In addition to chairing the Energy Committee, Senator Padilla serves on the Budget and Fiscal Review Committee; the Budget Subcommittee No. 5 on Revenues and the Economy; the Education Committee; the Banking, Finance and Insurance Committee; the Natural Resources and Water Committee; the Public Employment and Retirement Committee; and the Government Organization Committee. He also Chairs the Select Committee on Obesity & Diabetes and the Select Committee on College and University Admissions and Outreach.
In his first two years in the Senate, Padilla quickly established himself as a tenacious and effective legislator. He won legislative approval for 29 bills, 19 of which were signed by the Governor. In an effort to fight California’s obesity epidemic, Padilla’s landmark 2008 menu labeling legislation was signed by the Governor, making California the first state in the nation to require chain restaurants to post calorie information on menus and menu boards.
As a Senator he has demonstrated leadership on such issues as cracking down on illegal tobacco sales to minors, improving fire safety and preparedness in mobile home parks, preventing Shaken Baby Syndrome, expanding the availability of smoke-free housing, providing broadband service to underserved areas in California, protecting consumers who trade-in a vehicle when buying a car, pediatric trauma care availability, eliminating illegal cell phones from California prisons, expanding California recycling programs to include multifamily dwellings to reduce reliance on landfills and mandating that the California Air Resources Board do everything feasible to improve California’s air quality.
Alex Padilla’s work as a Senator represents the logical next chapter in an already impressive story as a public official in California. Born to immigrant parents from Mexico he was raised in the San Fernando Valley community of Pacoima where he excelled at local public school. His hard work paid off when he was accepted by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (M.I.T.) and graduated with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. After a stint working for Hughes Aircraft and after completing a post-graduate program in public policy with the CORO Foundation, Padilla went to work for U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein and later, then-Assembly member Tony Cardenas.
Alex Padilla was first elected to public office in 1999, when at the age of 26 he ran for Los Angeles City Council and served for seven and a half years. Just two years later, in July of 2001, his council colleagues elected him council president. Padilla was not only the first Latino, but the youngest person ever elected city council president. He was unanimously re-elected twice and served as council president of America’s second largest city for 4 ½ years. He stepped down as council president on January 1, 2006 when he launched his campaign for the State Senate.
As city council president, Alex Padilla provided citywide leadership at critical times - among them, hiring William Bratton as Chief of the Los Angeles Police Department, developing a plan to redesign the Los Angeles International Airport, and serving as Acting Mayor during the tragedy of September 11.
In his council district he is well known for bringing new libraries, fire stations and a new police division to his district as well as upgrading basic infrastructure including parks, streets, sidewalks and streetlights that impact the quality of life in neighborhoods. He also led efforts to locate and fund the construction of the new Children’s Museum of Los Angeles in the San Fernando Valley.
His leadership abilities did not go unnoticed. From 2005 – 2006 he led California’s 478 cities as the first Latino President of the League of California Cities. His service with the League of California Cities provided him unique opportunities to participate in negotiations on statewide issues. He served as Chair of the Los Angeles Leadership Council of the American Diabetes Association from 2006-2007 and now serves as Chair of the Honorary Board. He currently serves on the Board of Governors for the Children’s Museum of Los Angeles. He also serves as an Advisory Board Member of Meet Each Need with Dignity (MEND). Senator Padilla serves on the National Conference of State Legislatures Executive Committee on Sustainability and has previously served as a Committee Officer for the National Conference of State Legislatures from 2007-2008.
He also has received numerous awards during his time on the Senate including the 2008 South Coast Air Quality Management District Clean Air Award, one of 2008’s Latino Diabetes Association Legislator of the Year awards and the 2008 “True Friend to California Seniors” from the Congress of California Seniors.
As a member of the Senate, Alex Padilla, 35, proudly represents more than 850,000 residents of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles. He continues to live in the community of Pacoima.
