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Los Angeles County, CA June 26, 2007 Election
Smart Voter Full Biography for Jenny Oropeza

Candidate for
United States Representative; District 37

[photo]
This information is provided by the candidate

Effective Democratic Leadership for United States Congress Jenny Oropeza is a leader with unmatched experience and an impressive record of accomplishment.

California State Senate, 2006 + present

Jenny Oropeza continues her public service career in the Senate as chair of the powerful Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee. Her other high-profile leadership assignments after rising to the 40-member Senate include serving on the Senate Transportation Committee and the Elections, Reapportionment and Constitutional Amendments Committee. Jenny's many interests are reflected in her other assignments, which include chairing the select committees on Integrity of Elections and Public Health and the Environment. She stays in touch with the business and ethnic needs of her diverse district as a member of the Select Committees on the Alameda Corridor and Asian Pacific Affairs. She puts her substantial budget background to use as a member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Fiscal Oversight and Bonded Indebtedness, the Senate Subcommittee on California Ports and Goods Movement, as well as the Streamlined Sales Tax Project board of governance. In addition to serving on the Commission on the Status of Women, Jenny is one of 26 Latinos in the Legislature and chairs the California Latino Caucus Policy Committee on Environmental Justice.

California State Assembly, 2000 + 2006

Jenny Oropeza was a leader in the State Assembly from the very beginning of her first term. Named Chair of the Budget Committee less than a year after her election, Jenny helped steer the state through one of its most serious fiscal crises. She led the fight to prevent the Schwarzenegger Administration from balancing the budget on the backs of the poor, schools, the environment and public employees.

In 2004, she served as Chair of the Transportation Committee, working to fund mass transit and repair our state's aging transportation infrastructure.

Long Beach City Council, 1994-2000

As City Council member, Jenny Oropeza helped revitalize Long Beach's historic downtown, which was reeling from massive cutbacks in the aerospace industry and the closing of the Naval Shipyard. Jenny brought mixed-use loft housing, quality restaurants and vibrant retail to downtown, and strengthened Long Beach's tourism and trade industries. She fought to give residents the right to challenge alcohol licenses and created the first new park in her city in over three decades.

Jenny also represented the Southeast Cities as a member of the Board of the Metropolitan Transit Authority for four years.

Long Beach School Board, 1988-1994

Jenny Oropeza helped create the policies and programs that turned around the Long Beach School District. Today the district, which was awarded the 2003 Broad Prize for Urban Education, is nationally recognized as a model for reform and academic success. Oropeza led the effort to close the achievement gap and focus resources on underserved communities. She worked to create the highly regarded and innovative International School in her district, as a joint use project with the city.

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Created from information supplied by the candidate: June 18, 2007 18:36
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