Rebecca Beth Bauer-Kahan (

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

Bauer; born October 28, 1978), also known by her initials RBK, is an American attorney and politician who has served as a member of 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 ...

from the 16th district since 2018. A member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

, her district extends from

Lamorinda Lamorinda is an area within Contra Costa County, California in the United States. The name is a portmanteau from the names of the three cities that make up the region: Lafayette, Moraga and Orinda. Lamorinda sits east of the Berkeley Hills ...

to the

Tri-Valley The Tri-Valley area is grouping of three valleys in the East Bay (California), East Bay region of California's San Francisco Bay Area, Bay Area. The three valleys are Amador Valley, San Ramon Valley, and Livermore Valley. The Tri-Valley encompass ...

region of the

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Go ...

Early life and education

Bauer-Kahan was born Rebecca Beth Bauer in

Portola Valley, California Portola Valley is a town in San Mateo County, California. Located on the San Francisco Peninsula in the Bay Area, Portola Valley is a small, wealthy community nestled on the eastern slopes of the Santa Cruz Mountains. History Portola Val ...

, on October 28, 1978. She is Jewish. Her grandparents came to the United States as refugees in 1939 after fleeing Austria to escape

the Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...

. Bauer-Kahan spent her childhood in the Bay Area and attended Bay Area public schools. In 2000, she graduated from the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

with a

bachelor of arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in psychology. She then enrolled at

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

and graduated with a

juris doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

in 2004.

Early career

Bauer-Kahan practiced law in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

before returning to the Bay Area in 2005. As an attorney specializing in

environmental law Environmental law is a collective term encompassing aspects of the law that provide protection to the environment. A related but distinct set of regulatory regimes, now strongly influenced by environmental legal principles, focus on the manage ...

, she led internal investigations into corporations to improve their environmental practices and worked with tech companies on intellectual property cases. She was also an

immigration attorney Immigration law refers to the national statutes, regulations, and legal precedents governing immigration into and deportation from a country. Strictly speaking, it is distinct from other matters such as naturalization and citizenship, although ...

for the

International Refugee Assistance Project The International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP) works to organize law students and lawyers to develop and enforce legal and human rights for refugees and displaced persons. It was originally a project of the Urban Justice Center in New York Cit ...

, and on their behalf in 2017, she coordinated legal services at

San Francisco International Airport San Francisco International Airport is an international airport in an unincorporated area of San Mateo County, south of Downtown San Francisco. It has flights to points throughout North America and is a major gateway to Europe, the Middle E ...

to assist refugees and immigrants impacted by the

Trump administration Donald Trump's tenure as the List of presidents of the United States, 45th president of the United States began with Inauguration of Donald Trump, his inauguration on January 20, 2017, and ended on January 20, 2021. Trump, a Republican Party ...

’s

travel ban A travel ban is one of a variety of mobility restrictions imposed by governments. Bans can be universal or selective. The restrictions can be geographic, imposed by either the originating or destination jurisdiction. They can also be based on indiv ...

. In 2010, Bauer-Kahan became a law professor at

Santa Clara University Santa Clara University is a private Jesuit university in Santa Clara, California. Established in 1851, Santa Clara University is the oldest operating institution of higher learning in California. The university's campus surrounds the historic Mis ...

, teaching appellate law and legal research and writing. She joined the faculty of

Golden Gate University Golden Gate University (GGU or Golden Gate) is a private university in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1901, GGU specializes in educating professionals through its schools of law, business, taxation, and accounting. The university offers s ...

as a law professor in 2014. She decided to enter politics following the 2016 presidential election.

California State Assembly

Tenure

Bauer-Kahan was first elected to the California State Assembly in

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

, narrowly defeating

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

incumbent

Catharine Baker Catharine Bailey Baker (born May 1, 1971) is an American attorney and politician from California. Baker was a Republican member of the California State Assembly from 2014 to 2018. She has served on the California Fair Political Practices Commissi ...

. Soon after being sworn in, Bauer-Kahan ascended to a leadership role, becoming assistant speaker pro tempore of the Assembly; she left her leadership role after one term. She also founded the Select Committee on Reproductive Health—the first committee of its kind in the nation—during her first term. To date, Bauer-Kahan has authored 16 pieces of legislation that have been signed into law. Her legislation covers a variety of topics, such as

gun control Gun control, or firearms regulation, is the set of laws or policies that regulate the manufacture, sale, transfer, possession, modification, or use of firearms by civilians. Most countries have a restrictive firearm guiding policy, with on ...

, food safety, reproductive rights, and environmental protection. Her signature piece of legislation is AB 1666, which protects abortion providers from civil liability and was signed into law by

Gavin Newsom Gavin Christopher Newsom (born October 10, 1967) is an American politician and businessman who has been the 40th governor of California since 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 49th lieutenant governor of California fr ...

on the day

Roe v. Wade ''Roe v. Wade'', 410 U.S. 113 (1973),. was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court ruled that the Constitution of the United States conferred the right to have an abortion. The decision struck down many federal and st ...

was overturned. She also serves on 12 committees and currently chairs the Water, Parks, and Wildlife Committee and the Select Committee on Reproductive Health.

Committees

* Committee on Water, Parks, and Wildlife (chair) * Committee on Banking and Finance * Committee on Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials * Committee on Privacy and Consumer Protection * Committee on Utilities and Energy * Select Committee on Reproductive Health (chair) * Select Committee on California's Clean Energy Economy * Select Committee on Cybersecurity * Select Committee on Domestic Violence * Select Committee on Impact Investing for Improved Social and Environmental Outcomes * Select Committee on the Nonprofit Sector * Select Committee on Uplifting Girls and Women of Color in California

Caucus memberships

* Bay Area Caucus * California Legislative Environmental Caucus * California Legislative Jewish Caucus * California Legislative Women's Caucus

Elections

2018

2020

2022

Personal life

Bauer-Kahan married her husband, Darren Kahan, in 2007. When they married, both took the surname Bauer-Kahan. They have three children together and live in

Orinda, California Orinda is a city in Contra Costa County, California, United States. The city's population as of the 2020 census is estimated at 19,514 residents. History Orinda is located within four Mexican land grants: Rancho Laguna de los Palos Colorados ...

References

External links

Campaign website

Government website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bauer-Kahan, Rebecca 1978 births 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians California lawyers Georgetown University Law Center alumni Golden Gate University faculty Living people Democratic Party members of the California State Assembly People from Santa Clara County, California University of Pennsylvania School of Arts and Sciences alumni Women state legislators in California Jewish American state legislators in California