Steven Bradford

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Steven Bradford
Member of the California State Assembly
from the 62nd district
Incumbent
Assumed office
December 3, 2012
Preceded by Wilmer Carter
Member of the California State Assembly
from the 51st district
In office
September 10, 2009 – November 30, 2012
Preceded by Curren Price
Succeeded by Jimmy Gomez
Personal details
Nationality American
Political party Democratic
Residence Gardena, California

Steven Bradford (born January 12, 1960) is the Democratic Assembly member for the 62nd district of the California State Assembly. Bradford was elected to represent the 51st district in a special election held on September 1, 2009, after Curren Price resigned his seat to take a seat in the California State Senate.[1] He was re-elected in 2010 and, with 72% of the vote, was elected once more to represent the brand new 62nd District,[2] comprising the communities of Del Aire, Del Rey, El Segundo, Gardena, Hawthorne, Inglewood, Lawndale, Lennox, Marina del Rey, West Athens, Westchester, Westmont and Venice Beach.

Before his election to the Assembly, Bradford served on the Gardena City Council.

Early life and career

Bradford moved to Gardena with his family at age nine. He attended Purche Avenue Elementary School, Henry Clay Junior High School and Gardena High School. Following high school, he attended San Diego State University and California State University, Dominguez Hills, where he earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science and certificate in Paralegal Studies.

Bradford was the first African American elected to the Gardena City Council,[3] a post he held for over 12 years. He served one year as Mayor Pro Tem of the city.

He also worked twelve years as a public affairs executive at Southern California Edison, seven years at IBM, and four years as a program director at the Los Angeles Conservation Corps.[4][5]

Assembly career

Bradford’s time in the Assembly has been marked by his Chairmanship of the Assembly Committee on Utilities and Commerce, which has legislative jurisdiction over electricity, natural gas, telecommunications, private water corporations and other issues related to commerce. Actions taken in this committee affect California homeowners and businesses, the economy, jobs, and the environment.[6]

In his role as chair, Bradford has garnered national attention presiding over important hearings investigating major power outages, and how federal, state, and local authorities might better respond to such events and prevent them from happening in the future. In October 2011, Bradford convened a joint legislative hearing with Assemblymember Bonnie Lowenthal, chair of the Joint Legislative Committee on Emergency Management, in San Diego to discuss the massive power outage that struck the Pacific Southwest region in September of that year.[7]

In February 2012 Bradford and Lowenthal convened another hearing in Alhambra to investigate another major power outage that struck the Los Angeles area as a result of a massive windstorm.[8]

Early in 2013, Assembly Speaker John A. Perez named Bradford the Chair of the Assembly Select Committee on the Status of Boys and Men of Color.[9] The Select Committee is a bipartisan panel of legislators from around the state tasked with fact finding and making recommendations for addressing the issues facing young men in California, particularly black and Latino boys.

Legislation

In addition to his management of the Assembly Committee on Utilities and Commerce, Bradford has also authored several pieces of legislation on energy and utilities.

In 2012 Governor Jerry Brown signed into law AB 1511, which requires property sellers to inform buyers of important information about natural gas pipelines near their homes. The law was authored in response to the deadly explosion of an underground pipeline in San Bruno, CA.[10]

Bradford also authored AB 2201, which increases civil penalties on pipeline operators for safety violations. Bradford's bill brings the cap on penalties under California law into line with those under federal law: $200,000 per day, and a maximum of $2,000,000.[11]

Bradford drew national attention for AB 2514, a bill requiring the California Public Utilities Commission to conduct a study examining the costs and benefits of California's net-energy metering (NEM) program.[12] While NEM programs have helped develop solar power industries in countries around the world, Bradford believes they may shift costs unfairly onto homes without solar panels.[13]

Bradford closed the 2013 legislative year having 11 bills signed into law by Governor Edmund G. Brown, Jr.. Among these were bills focused on public safety, solar energy, and criminal justice reform:

  • AB 128: Following a recommendation made by the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST), AB 128 reclassifies the Los Angeles World Airports police department under Penal Code 830.1. Officers with 830.1 status are considered full peace officers, equivalent to municipal police departments. Without 830.1 status, airport officers are prohibited from removing vehicles, seizing drugs or weapons, or other functions for which they may need to wait for backup to arrive. Bradford, whose district includes Los Angeles International Airport, introduced the bill ten years after the POST recommendation. Earlier versions of the bill died in the Legislature.[14]
  • AB 170: For purposes of obtaining an assault weapons permit, under current law a "person" is defined as an "individual, partnership, corporation, limited liability company, association, or any other group or entity." AB 170 limits the definition of a person to an individual.[15]
  • AB 217: Extends existing financial support for solar installations on low-income households. The California Solar Initiative (CSI) directs 10 percent of its funding to solar subsidies for low and very-low income households. AB 217 extends this component for another six years after the CSI sunsets.[16]
  • AB 651: Gives judges more discretion to grant an expungement of a low-level offense when the offender has completed supervision, paid restitution, and demonstrated a commitment to reentry.[17]
  • AB 721: Clarifies the existing drug trafficking statute, which allows prosecutors to add a felony transportation charge to a person found physically moving any amount of illegal drugs. AB 721 adds the words "with the intent to sell" to clarify the Legislature's intent to punish drug dealers. An individual may still be eligible for a drug possession charge, but prosecutors will now have to show an individual had the intent to sell in order to qualify for an additional trafficking charge.[18]
  • AB 1371: The Three Feet for Safety Act establishes a minimum three-foot buffer around bicyclists on public roads in California. Motorists wishing to pass a cyclist must keep a distance of at least three feet, or slow to a safe and prudent speed if there is not enough room to give three feet. Bradford's version of the bill was the fifth attempt at a safe passing distance in California. Earlier versions died in the Legislature twice, and were twice vetoed by the Governor. The safe passing distance takes effect September 16, 2014.[19]

Electoral history

Steven Bradford was elected in a 2009 special election, following the resignation of Curren Price, who had recently won election to the California State Senate. He was elected to his first outright term in 2010.

Following the 2010 Census, California's legislative districts were redrawn. Bradford ran for the newly drawn 62nd district, which maintained many of the cities from the previous 51st district. Bradford was endorsed for election to the 62nd Assembly district by the local newspaper of the South Bay, the Daily Breeze.[20]

His electoral results are shown below.

Year Result
2009 52.89%[21]
2010 81.7%[22]
2012 72.1%[23]

References

  1. ↑ "Bradford wins 51st Assembly seat in special election". Los Angeles Times. 2 September 2009. Retrieved 4 January 2013. 
  2. ↑ "The Statement of Vote". California Secretary of State Debra Bowen. Retrieved 3 January 2013. 
  3. ↑ "Steve Bradford elected to state Assembly". Capitol Weekly. Retrieved 3 February 2013. 
  4. ↑ "Steve Bradford elected to state Assembly". Capitol Weekly. Retrieved 3 February 2013. 
  5. ↑ "Biography". California State Assembly Democratic Caucus. Retrieved 4 January 2013. 
  6. ↑ "Welcome to the Committee on Utilities and Commerce". California State Assembly. Retrieved 4 January 2013. 
  7. ↑ "Assembly members Bradford and Lowenthal convene hearing to find answers to southwest blackout". Signal Tribune Newspaper. 28 October 2011. Retrieved 4 January 2013. 
  8. ↑ Gazzar, Brenda (4 February 2012). "Lawmakers seek answers in windstorm response hearing". Pasadena Star News. Retrieved 4 January 2013. 
  9. ↑ . Assembly Democratic Caucus http://www.asmdc.org/members/a62/press-releases/speaker-perez-names-steven-bradford-chair-of-select-committee-on-boys-and-men-of-color. Retrieved 15 November 2013.  Missing or empty |title= (help)
  10. ↑ Lifsher, Marc (13 July 2012). "California governor signs safety-hazard notice bill". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 4 January 2013. 
  11. ↑ "2012 Legislation". California State Assembly Democratic Caucus. Retrieved 4 January 2013. 
  12. ↑ "Governor Approves Cost-Benefit Study of Solar Program". California State Assembly Democratic Caucus. Retrieved 4 January 2013. 
  13. ↑ Martin, Christopher (17 December 2012). "California Utilities Say Solar Raises Costs for Non-Users". Bloomberg. Retrieved 4 January 2013. 
  14. ↑ Sumers, Brian. "Gov. Jerry Brown signs bill giving LAX police more power". Daily Breeze. Retrieved 15 November 2013. 
  15. ↑ "Governor Signs Some Gun Bills, Vetoes Others". FOX 40. Retrieved 15 November 2013. 
  16. ↑ Clarke, Chris. "California Governor Signs Controversial Solar Bill, Among Others". KCET. Retrieved 15 November 2013. 
  17. ↑ Aguilar, Erika. "California bill would give ex-cons sentenced under realignment chance to expunge conviction". Southern California Public Radio. Retrieved 15 November 2013. 
  18. ↑ Siders, David. "Jerry Brown OKs change to drug-law definition of 'transporting' Read more here: http://blogs.sacbee.com/capitolalertlatest/2013/10/jerry-brown-oks-change-drug-law-definition-transport.html#storylink=cpy". Sacramento Bee. Retrieved 15 November 2013. 
  19. ↑ Pamer, Melissa. "Gov. Brown Signs Law Requiring Cars Give Bikes 3 Feet of Clearance". KTLA. Retrieved 15 November 2013. 
  20. ↑ "Endorsement: Our November picks for South Bay/Harbor Area state legislative races". Daily Breeze. 29 September 2012. Retrieved 4 January 2013. 
  21. ↑ "Official Canvass Special Primary Election, September 1, 2009 51st Assembly District* State Assemblymember". California Secretary of State Debra Bowen. Retrieved 4 January 2013. 
  22. ↑ "State Assemblymember by District (80 districts)". California Secretary of State Debra Bowen. Retrieved 4 January 2013. 
  23. ↑ "State Assemblymember by District". California Secretary of State Debra Bowen. Retrieved 4 January 2013. 

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