John Garamendi became a member of the U.S. House of Representatives on November 5, 2009. Before being elected to the House of Representatives, he was the 46th Lieutenant Governor of California. He brings to the House over 34 years of public service.

He has been a tireless proponent of job creation, vocational and college education, the environment, and health care, while always working to ensure the stability and success of the state he has always called home.

Garamendi, a lifelong rancher, dedicated family man, and longtime public servant, has forged a reputation as a fierce defender of consumers and a visionary, effective leader. He possesses the unique wealth of knowledge and experience necessary to tackle the complex challenges of today’s economy and Washington politics.

Garamendi was raised on his family’s cattle ranch in Mokelumne Hill, California. John graduated with a Bachelors Degree in business from the University of California at Berkeley, where he was an outstanding scholar-athlete, was second-team All-American offensive guard in football, a two-time member of the All-Pacific Coast Conference team, and the 1964 West Coast heavyweight wrestling champion. He holds an MBA from Harvard Business School.

Garamendi and his wife started their married life as Peace Corps volunteers teaching and doing community development work in remote southwest Ethiopia. Patti is now the Assistant Manager at the California Exposition and State Fair, and was previously the Deputy Secretary of California’s Business, Transportation and Housing Agency. She also served for eight years in the Clinton Administration as Assistant Director of the U.S. Peace Corps. John and his wife make their home in Walnut Grove and have six children and nine grandchildren.

As Lieutenant Governor, Garamendi was Chairman of the California Commission for Economic Development, where he transformed this important body into a powerhouse to advocate policies. Emphasizing work force development and vocational education together with focused research on new energy, health care, agriculture, bio-tech, aerospace, and transportation systems the commission, under Garamendi’s leadership, effectively advanced legislation and regulations to create opportunities for economic growth, research, job creation and new markets for California.

As a Regent of the University of California and Trustee for the California State University System, Garamendi served as a leading advocate to hold the line on student fee increases, and stop excessive salaries for administrators. Garamendi argued for increased state investment in education, which he believes is the key to future economic growth and social justice.

John Garamendi was elected to the California State Assembly in 1974 and the State Senate in 1976 where he served for 14 years, and attained the position of Senate Majority Leader. He chaired the Joint Committee on Science and Technology, the Senate Health and Welfare Committee, and the Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee. His laws established California’s emergency medical system, community health clinics, a work-oriented welfare program, protected Lake Tahoe and Mono Lakes, revised the State’s tax code, and developed an overall State agenda for economic competitiveness and scientific advancement. He authored the Senior Center Bond Act and the 1990 ballot proposition that provided $18 billion for mass transportation and highways.

In 1991, Garamendi became California’s first elected Insurance Commissioner. He successfully accomplished the monumental task of implementing Proposition 103, reforming the auto and homeowner insurance industry. He delivered over a $1 billion in rebates to insurance consumers, and lowered homeowner and auto insurance rates saving consumers over $24 billion in the ensuing years. He created a very successful anti-fraud program and consumer help line within the Department.

Under his leadership the Department protected homeowners devastated by the Oakland Hills Fire forcing insurance companies to fully pay for rebuilding destroyed homes. As a direct result of his guidance and vision, the Department earned the reputation among consumer organizations as the best consumer protection agency in the nation.

In 1995, President Bill Clinton appointed Garamendi as Deputy Secretary at the U.S. Department of the Interior, where his efforts led to significant environmental improvements for the nation and California. John spearheaded efforts to resolve water disputes in California, and protect the Sacramento San Joaquin River Delta. He negotiated the purchase of the Headwaters Forest, coordinated research on global warming, established habitat conservation plans in California, and improved the diversity of the work forces at the National Parks Service, the Bureau of Reclamation, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

At the time, U.S. Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt remarked, “I’m very grateful to John for his outstanding service to this Department and the country. John is a good man with extraordinary skills. I can’t think of anyone who cares more about the critical issues facing the West or who is willing to put in as much time and work to address them.”

Reelected California’s Insurance Commissioner in 2002, he set about rebuilding the Department into the best consumer protection agency in the nation. His 2003 Road Map to Reform Workers’ Compensation Insurance culminated in new laws that led to a 58% reduction in workers compensation costs. His Home Owners Bill of Rights legislation and his regulation of rates added protections for home owners and reduced homeowner premiums by over $500 million. John re-established an aggressive anti fraud task force, sponsored legislation to prevent senior insurance scams, and stopped insurance brokers from over charging business consumers.

He developed a comprehensive health care report entitled Priced Out that analyzed the crisis in California’s health care system and made 43 recommendations for change. In addition, he completed the implementation of Proposition 103 by writing regulations that based premiums principally on driving records, not on zip codes.

Garamendi proved he could not be bought and would not back down when he took on the nation’s largest title insurance firms in a far-reaching investigation into illegal kickback schemes, and won multi-million dollar fines and refunds of $36 million to California home buyers. He also fined the nation’s largest disability insurer $8 million and stopped the company from denying legitimate disability claims. The settlement changed the way all disability insurers handle claims and improved protection for disabled consumers.

One of Garamendi’s passions is a commitment to international service. He led a group of returned Peace Corps volunteers on a peace mission during the Ethiopian Eritrea war in 1998-2000. His five member team met with Ambassadors, Foreign Ministers, and the Heads of State of Ethiopia and Eritrea. Many of their proposals formed the basis for the eventual peace treaty. They also met with President Clinton and top U.S. officials. Garamendi created a similar team that assisted in peace negotiations in the Congo Civil War.