Burt Margolin, California Legislator

Biography

Burt Margolin was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee on September 28, 1950, and moved to California with his family in 1952. He was raised in the Pico-Robertson neighborhood of Los Angeles, where he attended Hamilton High School. Margolin received his Bachelor of Arts degree from University of California, Los Angeles, where he majored in political science. While at UCLA, Margolin served as President of the UCLA Bruin Young Democrats. Later, he was elected state treasurer of the California Federation of Young Democrats. From 1975-1977, Margolin worked as an aide to Congressman Henry Waxman, and then served as a legislative assistant to Assembly majority leader Howard Berman. In 1980, Margolin became Congressman Waxman's Chief of Staff, and worked in Washington, D.C. until 1982. As Chief of Staff, he handled much of Waxman's work as Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Health and the Environment.

Margolin was elected to the California Assembly in 1982, winning over 63 percent of the vote. He represented the 45th Assembly District, which at that time included the Los Angeles communities of Beverly-Fairfax, Hollywood, Laurel Canyon, and parts of Studio City, North Hollywood and the City of Burbank. During the first year of his term, Margolin became the first freshman lawmaker to be selected "Outstanding Legislator of the Year" by the California State Council on Developmental Disabilities. Throughout his fourteen years in the Legislature, Margolin focused on issues such as environmental protection, worker's compensation reform, and food safety. His primary interest was health care, and he authored many legislative measures related to emergency health care services, funding for county health care services, and expanding state assistance to provide health care for the medically disabled, indigent adults, senior citizens and pregnant women. In addition to his legislative activities, Margolin was also a member of the Sierra Club and the American Jewish Committee.

Due to term limits, Margolin left the Assembly in 1994. He currently resides in Los Angeles with his wife, Dr. Laurie Post, a clinical psychologist. He serves as President of the Margolin Group, a health policy and lobbying firm.

According to the California Legislature at Sacramento (Handbooks) and the Assembly Final History, Margolin served on the following Assembly committees:

State Assembly, 1990-1996

Standing Committees

Criminal Law and Public Safety, 1983-1984

*Vice Chair, 1983-1984

Elections, Reapportionment and Constitutional Amendments, 1987-1988, 1991-1992

Finance and Insurance, 1989-1990

Finance, Insurance and Public Investment, 1993-1994

Health, 1983-1994

*Chair, 1993-1994

Human Services, 1985-1986

Insurance, 1991-1992

*Chair, 1991-1992

Labor and Employment, 1983-1986

Natural Resources, 1989-1994

Public Safety, 1985-1988, 1993-1994

Rules, 1987-1988

Ways and Means, 1985-1988

Subcommittees

County Jails, 1993-1984

*Chair, 1983-1984

Health and Worker's Insurance, 1989-1990

Special Committees

Medi-Cal Oversight, 1985-1992

*Chair, 1987-1992

From the guide to the Burt Margolin Papers, 1983-1994, (California State Archives)