Betsy Butler (born June 14, 1963) is an American

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

who served in the

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

. She is a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

. Butler is the Executive Director of the Women's Law Center. She serves as Chair of the California Commission on Aging, appointed in 2015 by the President pro tempore of the California State Senate

Kevin de León Kevin Alexander Leon (born December 10, 1966), known professionally as Kevin de León and colloquially as KDL, is an American politician serving as the Los Angeles City Council member for district 14 since 2020. A member of the Democratic Party, ...

, and elected chair in 2018 and again in 2019. She also serves on the Los Angeles County Probation Commission, appointed by Los Angeles County Supervisor

Hilda Solis Hilda Lucia Solis (; born October 20, 1957) is an American politician and a member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors for the 1st district. Solis previously served as the 25th United States Secretary of Labor from 2009 to 2013, as par ...

in 2016. Prior to being elected to the State Assembly, Butler was a fundraiser for the

California League of Conservation Voters California Environmental Voters (also called EnviroVoters), formerly the California League of Conservation Voters (CLCV), is a lobbying and educational organization which focuses on environmental issues affecting California. It is affiliated with ...

and the

Consumer Attorneys of California Consumer Attorneys of California (CAOC) is a professional trade organization consisting of more than 3,000 California lawyers who represent the interests of consumers as plaintiffs in civil tort actions and in the California Legislature. The organ ...

. She began her career in public service with Lt. Governor

Leo T. McCarthy Leo Tarcissus McCarthy (August 15, 1930 – February 5, 2007) was an American politician and businessman. He served as the 43rd lieutenant governor of California from 1983 to 1995. Early life and education McCarthy, whose parents were both nat ...

and was an appointee of President

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

in the

International Trade Administration : The International Trade Administration (ITA) is an agency in the United States Department of Commerce that promotes United States exports of nonagricultural U.S. services and goods. Duties The ITA's stated goals are to # Provide practical info ...

at the

U.S. Department of Commerce The United States Department of Commerce is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government concerned with creating the conditions for economic growth ...

in Washington, D.C. She has been a board member of

Equality California Equality California or EQCA is a non-profit civil rights organization that advocates for the rights of LGBT people in California. It is the largest statewide LGBT organization in the United States and the largest member of the Equality Federation ...

, the

Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles The Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles (GMCLA) is an amateur choral group composed of gay men from the Los Angeles area. Established in 1979, GMCLA has grown in size, gained professional artistic and administrative staff, toured nationally and int ...

, and the Planned Parenthood Advocacy Project Los Angeles County.

Early life

Butler was born in

Sacramento, California ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...

and graduated from

Del Campo High School Del Campo High School, is a public high school in Fair Oaks, California. It is a member of the San Juan Unified School District and serves western Fair Oaks and eastern Carmichael. Academic curriculum Del Campo’s academic program is valida ...

Political career

Butler was elected to the California State Assembly in 2010 to what was then the 53rd Assembly District. Under the 2011 redistricting lines, the 53rd Assembly District changed significantly and Butler announced she would run for re-election in 2011 for the new open 50th Assembly District which includes Santa Monica, West Hollywood, Malibu and Beverly Hills. She narrowly lost reelection to Richard Bloom.

Legislative measures

Banning Bisphenol A

Authored by Butler and signed into law by Governor

Jerry Brown Edmund Gerald Brown Jr. (born April 7, 1938) is an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 34th and 39th governor of California from 1975 to 1983 and 2011 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected Secretary of S ...

, AB 1319 – The Toxin-Free Infants and Toddlers Act — prohibited the manufacture, sale or distribution of baby bottles and sippy cups that contain

Bisphenol A Bisphenol A (BPA) is a chemical compound primarily used in the manufacturing of various plastics. It is a colourless solid which is soluble in most common organic solvents, but has very poor solubility in water. BPA is produced on an industrial s ...

(BPA).

Issues relating to senior citizens

Butler also authored, and had signed into law, bills to protect the elderly against identity theft (AB 332) and to allow seniors and dependent adults to publicly speak out against their abusers (AB 2149).

Veteran issues

During her term in the Assembly, Butler was named the 2011 Legislator of the Year by the Vietnam Veterans of America and the 2012 Legislator of the Year by the American Veterans (AMVETS) AB 2371, AB 2490 and AB 1940.

Consumer protection

Governor Brown also signed Butler's legislation protecting consumers from fraudulent businesses (AB 2118) and green growth legislation designed to increase the use of electric and hybrid vehicles (AB 475).

Worker safety

In 2012 Butler introduced AB 2346, The Farm Worker Safety Act, to safeguard California farmworkers from abusive work conditions and ensure shade and water is readily available. The measure was vetoed by the governor.

Environmental

Butler introduced AB 972 to place a moratorium on hydraulic fracking.

References

External links

Betsy Butler, Democrat for California Assembly (campaign website)

Join California Betsy Butler
{{DEFAULTSORT:Butler, Betsy 1963 births Living people Democratic Party members of the California State Assembly Politicians from Sacramento, California San Diego State University alumni University of California, Los Angeles alumni Women state legislators in California 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians