Candidate for
Member of the State Assembly; District 18; Democratic Party

Alameda County Fire Chief Bill McCammon oversees an agency of 260 firefighters and staff who provide emergency services to more than 250,000 people in Dublin, San Leandro, the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the unincorporated portions of Alameda County.

The department is made up of 18 engine companies, four ladder-truck companies, a heavy rescue and specialized teams trained to respond to hazardous materials incidents, perform water rescues and conduct specialized rescues.

Chief McCammon's department answers more than 21,000 emergency calls each year, from fires to medical emergencies, rescues and hazardous material spills.

Department personnel have taken part in search and rescue operations following every recent major national disaster, including the World Trade Center attacks in New York and Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans.

Chief McCammon has devoted his life to helping people in harm's way. He started as a firefighter with the Valley Community Services District in 1978, and rose through the ranks of the San Leandro Fire Department from firefighter to fire chief. He has held the post of Alameda County Fire Chief since the agency was created in 1993.

Taking a leading role in shaping local, state, and national disaster preparedness and emergency response policy, Chief McCammon has served as President of the California Fire Chiefs Association, and as a member of the Emergency Response Training Advisory Committee, the Blue Ribbon Fire Commission, and state and county anti-terrorism advisory committees.

Recognized as an expert on the role of fire services in homeland security policy and wildland firefighting, Chief McCammon has testified before committees of both California lawmakers and the United States Congress regarding fire service issues.

Chief McCammon has also served as president and as a member of the board of directors of RotaCare of the Bay Area, a non-profit health services organization that operates nine free health clinics in the region. He is also a board member of the Las Positas College Foundation, and a lifetime member of the Sierra Club.

Born and raised in Oakland, Chief McCammon is the son of a former California Highway Patrol officer. He attended Oakland public schools, and Merritt Junior College before transferring to the University of California at Davis, where he earned a degree in Agricultural Science and Management.

Chief McCammon lives in Pleasanton with his wife, Rose Padilla Johnson, and three children. Rose is the Executive Director of the Davis Street Family Resource Center, a San Leandro non-profit agency providing services to low-income seniors, families and children.