California State Senate

California State Senate
California State Senate
California State Legislature
Type
Type	Upper house of the California State Legislature
Term limits	Elected before 2012:; 2 terms (8 years); Elected 2012 and after:; 3 terms (12 years)
History
New session started	December 7, 2020
Leadership
President	Eleni Kounalakis (D) ; since January 7, 2019
President pro tempore	Toni Atkins (D) ; since March 21, 2018
Majority Leader	Robert Hertzberg (D) ; since January 7, 2019
Minority Leader	Scott Wilk (R) ; since January 20, 2021
Structure
Seats	40
Political groups	Majority Democratic (31) Minority Republican (9)
Length of term	4 years
Authority	Article 4, California Constitution
Salary	$110,459/year + per diem
Elections
Voting system	Nonpartisan blanket primary
Last election	November 3, 2020 (20 seats)
Next election	November 8, 2022 (20 seats)
Redistricting	California Citizens Redistricting Commission
Motto
	Senatoris est civitatis libertatem tueri; ("It is a senator's duty to protect the liberty of the people.")
Meeting place
	State Senate Chamber; California State Capitol; Sacramento, California
Website
	senate.ca.gov

Coordinates: 38°34′36″N 121°29′37″W / 38.57667°N 121.49361°W / 38.57667; -121.49361

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

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 State Senate has the largest population per state senator ratio of any state legislative house. In the United States House of Representatives, California is apportioned 53 U.S. Representatives, each representing approximately 704,566 people,^[2] while in the California State Senate, each of the 40 State Senators represents approximately 931,349 people.^[3] This means that California State Senators each represent more people than California's members of the House of Representatives.

In the current legislative session, the Democratic Party holds 31 out of the 40 seats, which constitutes a 78% majority, well over the two-thirds supermajority threshold.

History[]

Prior to 1967, state legislative districts were drawn according to the "Little Federal Model" by which Assembly seats were drawn according to population and Senate seats were drawn according to county lines. The guidelines were that no Senate district would include more than three counties and none would include less than one complete county. This led to the situation of a populous county such as Los Angeles County (1960 population of 6 million) being accorded the same number of state senators (one) as less populous counties such as Alpine County (1960 pop. 397). In Reynolds v. Sims, the United States Supreme Court compelled all states to draw up districts with equal population. As such, boundaries were changed to comply with the ruling.

Leadership[]

The Lieutenant Governor is the ex officio President of the Senate, and may only cast a vote to break a tie. The President pro tempore is elected by the majority party caucus, followed by confirmation of the full Senate. 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 President pro tem is Democrat Toni Atkins of San Diego. The Minority Leader is Republican Scott Wilk of Santa Clarita.

Terms of office[]

Each state senator represents a population roughly equivalent to the State of Delaware. 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 two four-year terms (eight 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.^[4]

Members of the State Senate serve four-year terms. Every two years, half of the Senate's 40 seats are subject to election. This is in contrast to the State Assembly, in which all 80 seats in the Assembly are subject to election every two years.

Meeting chamber[]

The red tones of the California State Senate Chamber are based on the British House of Lords, which is outfitted in a similar color. The dais rests along a wall shaped like an "E", with its central projection housing the rostrum. The Lower tier dais runs across the entire chamber, there are several chairs and computers used by the senate officers, the most prominent seat is reserved for the secretary who calls the roll. The higher tier is smaller, with three chairs, the two largest and most ornate chairs are used by the President Pro Tempore (right chair) and the Lieutenant Governor (left chair). The third and smallest chair, placed in the center, is used by the presiding officer (acting in place of the Pro Tem) and is rarely sat in as the president is expected to stand. There are four other chairs flanking the dais used by the highest non-member officials attending the senate, a foreign dignitary or state officer for example. Each of the 40 senators is provided a desk, microphone and two chairs, one for the senator, another for guests or legislative aides. Almost every decorating element is identical to the Assembly Chamber. Along the cornice appears a portrait of George Washington and the Latin quotation: senatoris est civitatis libertatem tueri ("It is a senator's duty to protect the liberty of the people").

Composition[]


31	9
Democratic	Republican

Affiliation	Party (Shading indicates majority caucus)		Total

	Democratic	Republican		Vacant
End of previous legislature	29	11	40	0

Begin^[5]	30	9	39	1
Current	31	9	40	0
Latest voting share	78%	23%

Past composition of the Senate[]

Officers[]

Position		Name	Party	District
	Lieutenant Governor	Eleni Kounalakis	Democratic	California
	President pro tempore	Toni Atkins	Democratic	39th–San Diego
	Majority leader	Robert Hertzberg	Democratic	18th–Van Nuys
	Assistant majority leader	Mike McGuire	Democratic	2nd–Healdsburg
	Majority whip	Nancy Skinner	Democratic	9th–Berkeley
	Assistant majority whips	Maria Elena Durazo	Democratic	24th–Los Angeles
		Scott Wiener	Democratic	11th–San Francisco
		Susan Rubio	Democratic	22nd–Baldwin Park
	Democratic caucus chair	Connie Leyva	Democratic	20th–Chino
	Minority leader	Scott Wilk	Republican	21st–Santa Clarita
Secretary		Erika Contreras
Sergeant-at-Arms		Jodie O. Barnett III
Chaplain		Sister Michelle Gorman, RSM

The Secretary, the Sergeant-at-Arms, and the Chaplain are not members of the Legislature.

Members[]

	Name	Party	Residence	First elected	Term limited	Notes
1	Brian Dahle	Republican	Bieber	2019	2024	Previously served as Minority Leader of the California State Assembly
2	Mike McGuire	Democratic	Healdsburg	2014	2026
3	Bill Dodd	Democratic	Napa	2016	2024
4	Jim Nielsen	Republican	Red Bluff	2013	2022	Previously served from 1978 to 1990
5	Susan Eggman	Democratic	Stockton	2020	2024
6	Richard Pan	Democratic	Sacramento	2014	2022
7	Steve Glazer	Democratic	Orinda	2015	2028
8	Andreas Borgeas	Republican	Fresno	2018	2030
9	Nancy Skinner	Democratic	Berkeley	2016	2024
10	Bob Wieckowski	Democratic	Fremont	2014	2022
11	Scott Wiener	Democratic	San Francisco	2016	2028
12	Anna Caballero	Democratic	Salinas	2018	2026
13	Josh Becker	Democratic	Menlo Park	2020	2032
14	Melissa Hurtado	Democratic	Sanger	2018	2030
15	Dave Cortese	Democratic	Los Gatos	2020	2032
16	Shannon Grove	Republican	Bakersfield	2018	2026
17	John Laird	Democratic	Santa Cruz	2020	2028
18	Robert Hertzberg	Democratic	Van Nuys	2014	2022	Majority Leader. Previously served as Speaker of the Assembly
19	Monique Limón	Democratic	Santa Barbara	2020	2028
20	Connie Leyva	Democratic	Chino	2014	2026
21	Scott Wilk	Republican	Santa Clarita	2016	2024	Minority Leader
22	Susan Rubio	Democratic	Baldwin Park	2018	2030
23	Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh	Republican	Yucaipa	2020	2032
24	Maria Elena Durazo	Democratic	Los Angeles	2018	2030
25	Anthony Portantino	Democratic	La Cañada Flintridge	2016	2024
26	Ben Allen	Democratic	Santa Monica	2014	2026
27	Henry Stern	Democratic	Malibu	2016	2028
28	Melissa Melendez	Republican	Lake Elsinore	2020	2022
29	Josh Newman	Democratic	Fullerton	2020	2028	Previously served 2016-2018
30	Sydney Kamlager	Democratic	Los Angeles	2021	2030
31	Richard Roth	Democratic	Riverside	2012	2024
32	Bob Archuleta	Democratic	Pico Rivera	2018	2030
33	Lena Gonzalez	Democratic	Long Beach	2019	2032
34	Tom Umberg	Democratic	Santa Ana	2018	2026
35	Steven Bradford	Democratic	Gardena	2016	2024
36	Patricia Bates	Republican	Laguna Niguel	2014	2022	Previously served as Minority Leader
37	Dave Min	Democratic	Irvine	2020	2032
38	Brian Jones	Republican	Santee	2018	2026
39	Toni Atkins	Democratic	San Diego	2016	2024	President pro tempore. Previously served as Speaker of the State Assembly
40	Ben Hueso	Democratic	San Diego	2013	2022

: elected in a special election

Seating chart[]

Pan

Leyva

Wilk

Min

Dodd

Umberg

Durazo

Kamlager

Hurtado

Atkins

Hertzberg

Wieckowski

Committees[]

Current committees, chairs and vice chairs include:^[6]

Committee	Chair	Vice Chair
Agriculture	Andreas Borgeas (R)	Melissa Hurtado (D)
Appropriations	Anthony Portantino (D)	Patricia Bates (R)
Banking and Financial Institutions	Monique Limón (D)	Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh (R)
Budget and Fiscal Review	Nancy Skinner (D)	Jim Nielsen (R)
Business, Professions and Economic Development	Richard Roth (D)	Melissa Melendez (R)
Education	Connie Leyva (D)	Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh (R)
Elections and Constitutional Amendments	Steve Glazer (D)	Jim Nielsen (R)
Environmental Quality	Ben Allen (D)	Patricia Bates (R)
Governance and Finance	Mike McGuire (D)	Jim Nielsen (R)
Governmental Organization	Bill Dodd (D)	Jim Nielsen (R)
Health	Richard Pan (D)	Melissa Melendez (R)
Housing	Scott Wiener (D)	Patricia Bates (R)
Human Services	Melissa Hurtado (D)	Brian Jones (R)
Insurance	Susan Rubio (D)	Brian Jones (R)
Judiciary	Tom Umberg (D)	Andreas Borgeas (R)
Labor, Public Employment and Retirement	Dave Cortese (D)	Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh (R)
Military and Veterans Affairs	Bob Archuleta (D)	Shannon Grove (R)
Natural Resources and Water	Henry Stern (D)	Brian Jones (R)
Public Safety	Steven Bradford (D)	Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh (R)
Rules	Toni Atkins (D)	Patricia Bates (R)
Transportation	Lena Gonzalez (D)	Patricia Bates (R)

Offices[]

Senate Office of Research
Senate Office of Demographics
Senate Office of Floor Analysis
Senate Office of International Relations
Senate Office of Oversight and Outcomes

References[]

^ "California Constitution of 1879, prior to any amendments" (PDF). California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
^ "Apportionment Data". United States Census Bureau.
^ "Senate Roster". State of California.
^ "California Constitution Article 4; Legislative". California Office of Legislative Counsel. Archived from the original on February 23, 2019. Retrieved February 23, 2019.
^ Democrat Holly Mitchell (District 30) resigned in order to take a seat on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors. Sydney Kamlager was elected to succeed her.
^ "Committees". August 28, 2021. Retrieved August 28, 2021.

External links[]

Official website of the California State Senate
Interactive map of the state senate districts
California legislative district maps from 1849 to the present

[Article_IV,_Section_5-1] "California Constitution of 1879, prior to any amendments" (PDF). California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. Retrieved August 11, 2021.

[2] "Apportionment Data". United States Census Bureau.

[3] "Senate Roster". State of California.

[Article_4-4] "California Constitution Article 4; Legislative". California Office of Legislative Counsel. Archived from the original on February 23, 2019. Retrieved February 23, 2019.

[5] Democrat Holly Mitchell (District 30) resigned in order to take a seat on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors. Sydney Kamlager was elected to succeed her.

[6] "Committees". August 28, 2021. Retrieved August 28, 2021.

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List of U.S. state legislators

show v t Members of the California State Senate
2021–22 Session President of the Senate Eleni Kounalakis (D) President pro tempore Toni Atkins (D) Majority Leader Robert Hertzberg (D) Minority Leader Scott Wilk (R)
Brian Dahle (R) Mike McGuire (D) Bill Dodd (D) Jim Nielsen (R) Susan Eggman (D) Richard Pan (D) Steve Glazer (D) Andreas Borgeas (R) Nancy Skinner (D) Bob Wieckowski (D) Scott Wiener (D) Anna Caballero (D) Josh Becker (D) Melissa Hurtado (D) Dave Cortese (D) Shannon Grove (R) John Laird (D) Robert Hertzberg (D) Monique Limón (D) Connie Leyva (D) Scott Wilk (R) Susan Rubio (D) Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh (R) María Elena Durazo (D) Anthony Portantino (D) Ben Allen (D) Henry Stern (D) Melissa Melendez (R) Josh Newman (D) Sydney Kamlager (D) Richard Roth (D) Bob Archuleta (D) Lena Gonzalez (D) Tom Umberg (D) Steven Bradford (D) Patricia Bates (R) Dave Min (D) Brian Jones (R) Toni Atkins (D) Ben Hueso (D)
Democratic (31) Republican (9) California State Legislature California State Assembly California State Senate

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