Alberto Torrico was elected to the California State Assembly in 2004. He served for six years, including two years as Majority Leader. During his three terms in Sacramento, Alberto served as Chair of the Public Employee Retirement and Social Security Committee, charged with oversight of the pension funds, CALPERS and CALSTRS. He also chaired the Governmental Organization Committee. In the California Democratic primary of 2010, Alberto ran unsuccessfully for Attorney General. After being termed out of office, Torrico was appointed to the California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board in January 2011. Prior to his legislative tenure, Alberto served as a council member for three years in the East Bay community of Newark.

Early life and education

Torrico attended Irvington High School in Fremont, California. Torrico earned his

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

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and ...

from

Santa Clara University Santa Clara University is a private Jesuit university in Santa Clara, California. Established in 1851, Santa Clara University is the oldest operating institution of higher learning in California. The university's campus surrounds the historic M ...

. He went on to earn a J.D. from

University of California, Hastings College of Law The University of California, Hastings College of the Law (UC Hastings) is a public law school in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1878 by Serranus Clinton Hastings, UC Hastings was the first law school of the University of Californi ...

Legal career

Torrico was admitted to the California State Bar in 1996.CA State Bar Records
/ref> His career began as a policy aide for

Santa Clara County Santa Clara County, officially the County of Santa Clara, is the sixth-most populous county in the U.S. state of California, with a population of 1,936,259, as of the 2020 census. Santa Clara County and neighboring San Benito County together f ...

Supervisor Ron Gonzales. He specialized in

labor law Labour laws (also known as labor laws or employment laws) are those that mediate the relationship between workers, employing entities, trade unions, and the government. Collective labour law relates to the tripartite relationship between employee, ...

at Weinberg, Roger & Rosenfield in

Oakland Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

and

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

, taught labor and employment law at

San Jose City College San José City College (SJCC) is a public community college in San Jose, California. Founded in 1921, SJCC is located in the West San Jose neighborhood of Fruitdale. History The college was founded in 1921, opening its doors to students in Sep ...

, and served as senior assistant counsel at the

Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority, more commonly known simply as the Valley Transportation Authority (VTA), is a special district responsible for public transit services, congestion management, specific highway improvement projects ...

in San Jose. In 2001, he opened a private law practice in Fremont.

Public service

Newark City Council

Torrico was elected to the Newark City Council in 2001 and later served as Vice-Mayor of Newark.

California State Assembly

Torrico was elected to the California state Assembly in 2004 to succeed termed-out John Dutra. In his second term Torrico was appointed Chair of the Governmental Organization Committee. Torrico was later named Director for Majority Affairs.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Torrico, Alberto 1969 births American politicians of Bolivian descent Living people Politicians from San Francisco Santa Clara University alumni University of California College of the Law, San Francisco alumni American legal scholars Lawyers from San Francisco California city council members Democratic Party members of the California State Assembly California politicians of Japanese descent Hispanic and Latino American state legislators in California American people of Bolivian descent People from Fremont, California People from Newark, California 21st-century American politicians