Félix W. Ortiz (born November 2, 1959, in

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

) is an American politician, formerly representing

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's 51st Assembly District. He is a Democrat and served as Assistant

Speaker of the New York State Assembly The speaker of the New York State Assembly is the highest official in the New York State Assembly, customarily elected from the ranks of the majority party. As in most countries with a British heritage, the speaker presides over the lower hou ...

Early life

Ortiz moved from Puerto Rico to

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in 1980, becoming the first member of his family to move to the continental United States. He attended Boricua College, graduating in 1983 with a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University o ...

degree in business administration. He received a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

public administration Public Administration (a form of governance) or Public Policy and Administration (an academic discipline) is the implementation of public policy, Administration (government), administration of Government, government establishment (Governance#P ...

from

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, ...

in 1986. Ortiz then joined the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

, serving from 1986 to 1988.

Children

*Felix W. Ortiz III (Technology Entrepreneur & US Army Veteran) *Felix A. Ortiz *Daniel F. Ortiz Sr

Political career

Ortiz was first elected to the assembly in November 1994, defeating the incumbent Javier A. Nieves. In 2000, Assemblyman Ortiz achieved passage of the nation's first law to ban the use of hand held cell phones while driving a motor vehicle. In 2001, he introduced a bill that would lower the drinking age to 18; he cited unfairness and difficulty with enforcement as his motivations. In March 2010, Ortiz introduced a bill, co-sponsored with assembly members Margaret Markey and N. Nick Perry, that would prohibit the use of all forms of

salt Salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl), a chemical compound belonging to the larger class of salts; salt in the form of a natural crystalline mineral is known as rock salt or halite. Salt is present in vast quanti ...

in the preparation and cooking of all restaurant food. Ortiz said he was inspired to introduce the bill after his father suffered a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which m ...

due to high

blood pressure Blood pressure (BP) is the pressure of circulating blood against the walls of blood vessels. Most of this pressure results from the heart pumping blood through the circulatory system. When used without qualification, the term "blood pressur ...

. The bill quickly gained media attention, and prompted negative comments from New York chefs such as

Tom Colicchio Thomas Patrick Colicchio (; born August 15, 1962) is an American celebrity chef. He co-founded the Gramercy Tavern in New York City, and formerly served as a co-owner and as the executive chef. He is also the founder of Crafted Hospitality, wh ...

, who said a salt ban would mean "no one would come here anymore," and

mayor

Michael Bloomberg Michael Rubens Bloomberg (born February 14, 1942) is an American businessman, politician, philanthropist, and author. He is the majority owner, co-founder and CEO of Bloomberg L.P. He was Mayor of New York City from 2002 to 2013, and was a c ...

, who called the bill "ridiculous".Reports Of Salt's Death Have Been Greatly Exaggerated
, Elizabeth Benjamin, ''The Daily Politics'', March 12, 2010 The proposal also earned Ortiz the title of "Nanny of the Month" for March 2010 from Reason.tv. Responding to the outcry, Ortiz issued a statement saying that his intention was to have the bill only outlaw the use of salt "as an additive", not as "a functional component of the recipe". Ortiz has supported various progressive public policies. He has passed legislation in areas of worker rights and safety, obesity prevention, banning the use of cell phones while driving and advocating for increases in

organ donation Organ donation is the process when a person allows an organ (anatomy), organ of their own to be removed and organ transplantation, transplanted to another person, #Legislation and global perspectives, legally, either by consent while the donor ...

s. Ortiz, who has worked with First Lady

Michelle Obama Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama (born January 17, 1964) is an American attorney and author who served as first lady of the United States from 2009 to 2017. She was the first African-American woman to serve in this position. She is married t ...

on obesity prevention measures, also introduced legislation mandating that fast food restaurants post calories counts for food items on their menus. The calorie counts are now standard practice at fast food eateries. Ortiz has served as chair of several committees and legislative task forces including Cities, Veterans Affairs, Mental Health, Alcohol and Drug Abuse, Food, Farm and Nutrition and the Legislature's Puerto Rican and Hispanic Task Force. He has also served on the executive committee of the

National Conference of State Legislatures The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), established in 1975, is a "nonpartisan public officials’ association composed of sitting state legislators" from the states, territories and commonwealths of the United States. Background ...

(NCSL) and serves as co-chair of the NCSL Task Force on International Relations. He is the former chairman of the National Hispanic Caucus of State Legislators (NHCSL) and is a member of the Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic and Asian Caucus. In February 2015 Assemblyman Ortiz was appointed Assistant Speaker of the New York State Assembly; he is the first Hispanic to hold the position. Ortiz ran for the 38th district of the New York City Council in 2017, but lost in the primary to incumbent Carlos Menchaca. On July 16, 2020, Ortiz conceded defeat against

Democratic Socialist Democratic socialism is a left-wing political philosophy that supports political democracy and some form of a socially owned economy, with a particular emphasis on economic democracy, workplace democracy, and workers' self-management withi ...

and political newcomer Marcela Mitaynes after absentee ballots from the June 23 Democratic primary had been counted. Once the votes were certified, Ortiz had lost by 280 votes in a 4-way primary.

References

External links

Assembly Member WebsiteGotham Gazette's Eye On Albany: New York State Assembly: District 51
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ortiz, Felix W. 1959 births Living people American politicians of Puerto Rican descent Hispanic and Latino American state legislators in New York (state) Democratic Party members of the New York State Assembly New York University alumni People from Salinas, Puerto Rico United States Army soldiers 2012 United States presidential electors 21st-century American politicians