| George Runner | |
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California State Senate
Republican Caucus Chair |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office December 17, 2004 |
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| Preceded by | Chuck Poochigian |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office December 6, 2004 |
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| Preceded by | Pete Knight |
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| In office December 2, 1996 – November 30, 2002 |
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| Preceded by | Pete Knight |
| Succeeded by | Sharon Runner |
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| Born | March 25, 1952 Scotia, New York |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) | Sharon Runner |
| Children | Micah, Rebekah |
| Religion | Christian |
| Website | http://www.georgerunner.com http://www.sen.ca.gov/runner |
George C. Runner, Jr. (born March 25, 1952) is an American taxpayer advocate, founder of a private school, and a Republican California State Senator representing the 17th Senate District, which includes portions of Los Angeles County, San Bernardino County and Ventura County. He is the Republican Caucus Chair, making him the second-highest ranking Republican in the Senate.
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Early life
Born in Scotia, New York, Runner moved with his family to Lancaster, California as a young child. After attending local public schools in Lancaster, Runner earned a Bachelor's Degree in Business Management from the University of Redlands and a graduate certificate in Management from Azusa Pacific University.
Private school founding
With his wife Sharon, George Runner founded the Desert Christian Schools. According to the Desert Christian Schools website,[1]
"We wanted a school for not only everyone else's children, but for our own children, where we knew they were going to hear about God in an exciting way; a place where their faith was not just some parallel subject matter, but was integrated effectively throughout history, math, science and English."
Local politics
In 1992, Runner was elected to the Lancaster City Council. He served as Lancaster's Vice Mayor from 1994–1995 and as Mayor of Lancaster from 1995–1996. During his mayoral term, the California Business Journal named Lancaster the number one mid-size city with which to do business.[2]
State politics
In 1996, Runner was elected to represent the 36th Assembly District and served in the State Assembly for three terms, from 1996 to 2002. During this time of service, Runner served as Vice Chair of the Assembly Budget Committee.
In 2004, he was elected to the Senate to represent the 17th Senate District.
Currently, Runner is the Chair of the Senate Republican Caucus. He is also the Vice Chair of the Senate Banking, Finance, and Insurance Committee, Vice Chair of the Senate Environmental Quality Committee, and is a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee, and the Senate Select Committee on Defense and Aerospace Industries.
During the 2005-06 legislative session, Runner was named Legislator of the Year by:
- The California State Sheriffs Association
- Crime Victims United
- California Sexual Assault Investigators Association
- Coalition of Chief Probation Officers
- California Coalition of Directors of Environmental Health
- California Community College Trustees
- California Building Industry Association
He also received the Pursuit of Justice Award from the Association of Deputy District Attorneys-Los Angeles County.[3]
Amber Alert
In 2002, Runner authored California's Amber Alert system,[4] which has successfully utilized the Emergency Alert System to involve the general public in the search for abducted children and has aided in numerous successful parent-child reunions.
Jessica's Law
In 2006, along with his wife, Assemblywoman Sharon Runner, George Runner authored Proposition 83, California's version of Jessica's Law. The measure passed with the support of 71% of California voters, and passed in 57 of California's 58 counties.[5]
Jessica's Law ensures that all sexual offenders who are convicted of activity with children under the age of 14 are put into a prison with a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years or 25 years to life. It eliminates all "first-offense" sexual offense provisions from California law.
It also eliminates all "good-time" credits for sexual offenders serving prison terms; under the authored provisions they are required to serve their entire sentence and will not be released for good behavior. The law requires that sex offenders who are released from prison wear a GPS bracelet for life.
It also creates a 2,000-foot (615 meter) zone around schools and parks in which registered sex offenders are prohibited from residing.
Taxpayer advocacy
Since 2009, Runner has served with Americans for Prosperity as a taxpayer advocate on local tax issues in California.[6]
Family
He married Sharon Oden in 1973. She succeeded him as the 36th Assembly District representative in 2002. Senator and Assemblywoman Runner are the first husband and wife to serve concurrently in the California State Legislature.
They have a son, Micah, daughter-in-law, Sandy, daughter Rebekah (a member of the U.S. Coast Guard), and three grandchildren.
References
- ^ History of Desert Christian Schools
- ^ California Education Dialogue - Panelist George Runner
- ^ Official biography
- ^ Assembly Bill 415, Runner. Chapter 517, Statutes of 2002.
- ^ California Secretary of State - Election Results - Proposition 83
- ^ "Senator George Runner joins Americans for Prosperity as Taxpayer Advocate". Americans for Prosperity. http://www.americansforprosperity.org/082709-senator-george-runner-joins-americans-prosperity-taxpayer-advocate.
External links
- Official Senate web site
- George Runner for Board of Equalization
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by William J. "Pete" Knight |
California State Assemblymember 36th District 1996 – 2002 |
Succeeded by Sharon Runner |
| California State Senator 17th District 2004 – present |
Incumbent | |
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