S. Joseph Simitian
Member of the California Senate from the 11th district
Incumbent
Assumed office  2004
Preceded by	Byron Sher
Born	February 1, 1953
Nationality	American
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Mary Hughes
Alma mater	Colorado College Stanford University University of California, Berkeley
Profession	Politician

Saren Joseph Simitian (born February 1, 1953) is a Democratic California State Senator elected in 2004^[1]. Simitian represents the 11th Senate District, which encompasses all or part of 13 cities in San Mateo, Santa Clara, and Santa Cruz counties.

Simitian chairs the California Senate Environmental Quality Committee and the Budget Subcommittee #2 on Resources. He is the author of California's 20% renewable energy portfolio standard and California's data breach notification law, which requires companies and agencies to notify individuals when their personal information is compromised^[2].

Simitian also authored several high profile transportation safety laws, including California's hands-free cell phone bill^[3][4].

Contents 1 Family 2 Education 3 Early Political Career 4 Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors 5 State Assembly 6 State Senate 7 Legislation 8 Committees 9 Awards 10 Community Service 10.1 Current 10.2 Past 11 External links 12 References

[edit] Family

Joe Simitian is married to Mary Hughes, a Bay Area political consultant. Simitian proposed to Hughes on election night in 1996 upon being elected to the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors.^[5]

[edit] Education

• Palo Alto High School Class of 1970
• Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, cum laude (with academic honors), Colorado College
• Master of Arts, International Policy Studies, Stanford University
• Master of City Planning, University of California, Berkeley
• Juris Doctor, Boalt Hall School of Law at University of California, Berkeley

[edit] Early Political Career

Joe Simitian served as President of the Palo Alto School Board from 1983-1991^[6]. He was on the Palo Alto City Council from 1992-1996 and served as Mayor for part of that time.

[edit] Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors

Simitian was elected to the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors in November 1996. From 1997-2000 he represented District 5 (Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Palo Alto, Cupertino, Mountain View, Saratoga, and Stanford, as well as portions of Sunnyvale and San Jose).

[edit] State Assembly

Simitian was elected to the California State Assembly's 21st District in November 2000, and re-elected to a second term in November 2002.

[edit] State Senate

Simitian was elected to the California State Senate in November 2004 and is currently serving as State Senator for District 11. He defeated former Assemblyman and San Mateo County Supervisor Ted Lempert in the Democratic primary election, also prevailing in the general election. Simitian was re-elected to a second term in 2008. His current term ends in 2012.

[edit] Legislation

Some of Joe Simitian's notable pieces of legislation include:^[7]

• AB 700: Security breach notification law (2001)
• AB 2140: Criminalize elder abuse (2002)
• AB 2474: Antifreeze bittering (2002)
• AB 2672: Cruise ship sewage dumping ban (2004)
• SB 107: 20% Renewable energy portfolio (2005)
• SB 201: Sustainable marine aquaculture (2005)
• SB 1613: Hands-free cell phone law (2006)
• SB 28: Prohibition on texting while driving (2007)
• SB 1298: Education information system (2008)

[edit] Committees

Simitian serves on the following Senate committees:^[8]

• Chair, Environmental Quality Committee
• Member, Budget Committee
  • Chair, Budget Subcommittee #2 on Resources, Environmental Protection, Energy, and Transportation
• Member, Education Committee
• Member, Energy, Utilities, and Communications Committee
• Member, Natural Resources and Water Committee
• Member, Transportation and Housing Committee
• Chair, Select Committee on Privacy
• Chair, Select Committee on Delta Conservation, Conveyance, and Governance
• Member, Select Committee on Delta Stewardship and Sustainability
• Member, Select Committee on Climate Change and A.B. 32 Implementation

[edit] Awards

Simitian has received the following awards (partial list):^[9]

• Californians Against Waste, Legislator of the Year
• Palo Alto Educators Association, Friend of Education Award
• Sierra Club, In Recognition of a Lifetime of Commitment
• Palo Alto Stanford Heritage Award, Preservationist of the Year
• Bay Area Municipal Elections Committee, Friend of BAYMEC Award
• Junior Statesman Foundation, Distinguished Leader Award
• Housing Action Coalition, Housing Leadership Award
• Billy DeFrank Lesbian and Gay Community Center, Friend of the DeFrank Center Award

[edit] Community Service

The following are some of Simitian's other activites:^[10]

[edit] Current

• Board of Directors, American Leadership Forum - Silicon Valley
• Board of Advisors, Adolescent Counseling Services
• Board of Advisors, O'Neill Sea Odyssey
• Honorary Council Member, Leadership Mountain View
• Advisory Team, San Mateo County Service Learning Project
• Trustee Emeritus, Junior Statesmen Foundation

[edit] Past

• Co-Chair, Housing Leadership Council, Silicon Valley Leadership Group
• Board of Advisors, Clara-Mateo Alliance, Inc.
• Board of Directors, Joint Venture: Silicon Valley Network
• Steering Committee, Bay Area Council
• Member, California UN 50 Committee
• Explorer Scouts Advisor, Law Explorer Post #804
• North County Allocations Committee, United Way of Santa Clara County
• President, Friends of the Children's Theatre
• President of the Santa Clara County School Boards' Association
• President of the League of California Cities Peninsula Division
• Chairperson of the Santa Clara County Intergovernmental Council (IGC)
• Representative of the President of the United States, 1994 U.S. Delegation to Observe Elections in El Salvador
• Elections Supervisor, 1997 and 1998 Bosnian Elections
• Volunteer, International Rescue Committee (IRC) 1999 refugee relief and resettlement efforts in Albania and Kosovo

[edit] External links

• State Senate website
• Campaign website
• Facebook page
• Ballotopedia
• Election History - Join California

[edit] References

1. ^ Biography
2. ^ AB 700 (PDF) - State of California
3. ^ New California Hands Free Law
4. ^ Schwarzenegger outlaws text-messaging while driving - Los Angeles Times
5. ^ Palo Alto Online
6. ^ Sen. Joe Simitian - Friends of UC Santa Cruz
7. ^ Legislation
8. ^ Committees
9. ^ Awards
10. ^ Background

v • d • e Current members of the California State Senate President: Vacant • President pro tempore: Darrell Steinberg (D) • Majority Leader: Dean Florez (D) • Minority Leader: Dennis Hollingsworth (R) Democratic (25) • Republican (14) • Vacancy (1)     Dave Cox (R) Pat Wiggins (D) Mark Leno (D) Sam Aanestad (R) Lois Wolk (D) Darrell Steinberg (D) Mark DeSaulnier (D) Leland Yee (D) Loni Hancock (D) Ellen Corbett (D) Joe Simitian (D) Jeff Denham (R) Elaine Alquist (D) Dave Cogdill (R) Abel Maldonado (R) Dean Florez (D) George Runner (R) Roy Ashburn (R) Tony Strickland (R) Alex Padilla (D) Carol Liu (D) Gil Cedillo (D) Fran Pavley (D) Gloria Romero (D) Roderick Wright (D) Curren Price (D) Alan Lowenthal (D) Jenny Oropeza (D) Bob Huff (R) Ronald Calderon (D) Robert Dutton (R) Gloria Negrete McLeod (D) Mimi Walters (R) Lou Correa (D) Tom Harman (R) Dennis Hollingsworth (R) Vacant Mark Wyland (R) Christine Kehoe (D) Denise Moreno Ducheny (D) See also: California State Legislature • California State Assembly

Preceded by Dianne McKenna

Santa Clara County Supervisor, 5th District 1996—2000

Succeeded by Liz Kniss