Martha M. Escutia (born January 16, 1957) is an American politician and attorney who served as a member of the

California State Senate 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, Cal ...

from 1998 until 2006 and

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 ...

from 1992 until 1998.

Early life and education

Escutia was born and raised in

East Los Angeles East Los Angeles ( es, Este de Los Ángeles), or East L.A., is an unincorporated area in Los Angeles County, California. As of the 2020 census it had a population of 118,786, a drop of 6.1% from 2010, when it was 126,496. For statistical purpo ...

. Escutia earned a bachelor's degree in

public administration Public Administration (a form of governance) or Public Policy and Administration (an academic discipline) is the implementation of public policy, administration of government establishment (public governance), management of non-profit establ ...

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

and received her J.D. degree from

Georgetown University Law Center The Georgetown University Law Center (Georgetown Law) is the law school of Georgetown University, a private research university in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1870 and is the largest law school in the United States by enrollment and ...

. She holds certificates in Advanced International Legal Studies of Trade and Tariffs from the

World Court The International Court of Justice (ICJ; french: Cour internationale de justice, links=no; ), sometimes known as the World Court, is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN). It settles disputes between states in accordanc ...

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...

, and in Foreign Investment from the National Autonomous University in

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...

Career

Escutia represented

California's 30th State Senate district California's 30th State Senatorial district is one of 40 California California State Senate, State Senate districts. The seat is currently represented by of . District profile The district encompasses most of Downtown Los Angeles, Downtown a ...

. She served as Chair of the Senate Committee on Energy, Utilities and Communications (EU&C) and was also the first woman Chair of the 27-member California Legislative Latino Caucus. As a Senator, Escutia held key leadership positions including: Chair of the Senate Health and Human Services Committee as a freshman senator, the first Latina Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, the first woman Chair of the Assembly Judiciary Committee, and Chair of the California Legislative Women's Caucus. Throughout her career, Escutia championed universal health care for children and is recognized as the creator of Healthy Families. Seeking to protect California's children from unhealthy levels of air contaminants, she established the first-ever Children's Environmental Health Protection Act. Escutia was also successful in passing legislation to implement the first low-cost auto insurance program for low-income residents in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

and

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

counties. The California Labor Federation AFL-CIO named her "Legislator of the Year" for her advocacy on behalf of working men and women. Her outstanding work on environmental issues has brought recognition from the California

League of Conservation Voters The League of Conservation Voters (LCV) is an American environmental advocacy group. LCV says that it "advocates for sound environmental laws and policies, holds elected officials accountable for their votes and actions, and elects pro-environmen ...

, the

Sierra Club The Sierra Club is an environmental organization with chapters in all 50 United States, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico. The club was founded on May 28, 1892, in San Francisco, California, by Scottish-American preservationist John Muir, who be ...

and the

American Lung Association The American Lung Association is a voluntary health organization whose mission is to save lives by improving lung health and preventing lung disease through education, advocacy and research. History The organization was founded in 1904 to figh ...

. The

Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors (LACBOS) is the five-member governing body of Los Angeles County, California, United States. History On April 1, 1850 the citizens of Los Angeles elected a three-man Court of Sessions as their first ...

has commemorated her "Commitment to the People of Los Angeles County." She was also awarded the "Good Housekeeping Award for Women in Government" for her work on the Children's Environmental Health Protections. In 1999, the California School Boards Association awarded her its "Legislator of the Year Award" for her efforts on behalf of schoolchildren and

K-12 K-1 is a professional kickboxing promotion established in 1993, well known worldwide mainly for its heavyweight division fights and Grand Prix tournaments. In January 2012, K-1 Global Holdings Limited, a company registered in Hong Kong, acquired ...

education. In November 2005, the Corona New Primary Center in

Bell, California Bell is an incorporated city in Los Angeles County, California, near the center of the former San Antonio Township (abolished after 1960). Its population was 35,477 at the 2010 census, down from 36,664 in the 2000 census. Bell is located on the ...

, was dedicated the Martha Escutia Primary Center in her honor. Since 2013, Escutia has served as Vice President of the

for Government Relations.

Personal life

Escutia has two children, Andres and Diego.

References

External links

Escutia's Profile with Manatt, Phelps, and PhillipsProfile and The Senators firm
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Join California Martha Escutia
, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Escutia, Martha 1957 births 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians California state senators Georgetown University Law Center alumni Hispanic and Latino American state legislators in California Hispanic and Latino American women in politics Living people Members of the California State Assembly Mexican-American people in California politics People from East Los Angeles, California USC Sol Price School of Public Policy alumni Women state legislators in California