Newly elected Assemblymember Anthony J. Portantino represents the 44th Assembly District, replacing the termed out Assembly Member Carol Liu, and serves as the Chair of the Assembly Committee on Higher Education. This committee has jurisdiction over private universities, public universities, and the community college systems, as well as postsecondary education and student financial aid. To date, Mr. Portantino has only introduced two measures, both related to umbilical cord blood banking.

Mr. Portantino is originally from Long Branch, New Jersey where he attended public schools and graduated from Albright College in Reading, Pennsylvania with a BS in Psychology and Business. Mr. Portentino and his wife Ellen have two daughters who both attend public schools. His pursuit for a career in the entertainment industry brought him to California and has led to work in both the film and TV industry.

Before his election as an Assemblymember, Mr. Portantino served for almost 8 years on the La Canada Flintridge City Council and two terms as its Mayor. He has also served as President of the League of California Cities Mayors and the President of the Executive Board of the California Contract Cities Association. He also was a past member of the Pasadena City College Bond Oversight Committee.

During his campaign Mr. Portantino has stated that his top three issues in the Assembly will be public education, improving government efficiency, and fixing California’s healthcare system. He states that he wants to rebuild the collective trust in the traditional K-12 educational structure while expanding that model to include access to higher education and a greater connection to vocational training and trade education. Mr. Portantino was endorsed by the California Faculty Association, the California Teacher’s Association, and the California Federation of Teachers, during his campaign.

Mr. Portantino also touts his strong environmental record and noted that he was supported by the Sierra Club and the California League of Conservation Voters. While serving as the Vice Chair of the Santa Monica Mountains Advisory Committee, Mr. Portantino went Washington D.C. to lobby Congress on environmental legislation – twice on Sierra Club delegations in support of environmental legislation sponsored by Senator Barbara Boxer and Congresswoman Hilda Solis.

Mr. Portantino is involved in his community and is a proud PTA dad, an American Youth Soccer Association referee and a strong supporter of the Girl Scouts where his two daughters participate.

For more information, please visit Assembly Member Portantino's website.