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Brian Dahle won his current office in a special election in 2019 after his predecessor, Ted Gaines, resigned for a seat on the State Board of Equalization.
A Republican, Dahle has aligned himself with traditional conservative values as a senator, speaking against a proposed utility tax and increased regulations on pesticides. “We have to go after the people who are breaking the law, who are buying these things illegal and using them in the wrong fashion,” Dahle said in a Sept. 30 video opposing a bill for the latter. “I would venture to say that 99 percent of the people that are regulated in this business are doing it the right way, including myself.”
Background
Dahle owns and operates a 2,000-acre farm in Bieber, California, that has been in his family since the 1940s. Prior to his election to the state senate, Dahle served in the California State Assembly and on the Lassen County Board of Supervisors. He and his wife, Megan, who was elected to his former assembly seat in District 1, have been married for more than 20 years and have three children.
Select Legislation
SB 975: The California Legislature passed landmark legislation in 2019, AB 5, requiring reclassification of numerous freelance professionals as employees. Since then, several industries have sought exemptions from the law, some successfully, including journalism and rideshare companies. Dahle’s bill, introduced in February 2020 with eight co-authors, all Republican, would have exempted the timber industry. The bill was unsuccessful.
SB 921: Dahle was successful in a bill, signed into law by Gov. Gavin Newsom in September 2020, that transferred control of part of Route 174 from the state to the city of Grass Valley.
Committees
Banking and Financial Institutions
Budget and Fiscal Review
Energy, Utilities & Communications (vice chair)
Environmental Quality
Transportation
Subcommittee 2 on Resources, Environmental Protection, Energy and Transportation
District boundaries and office locations
Dahle’s district stretches from the suburbs of Sacramento to most of California’s border with Oregon, spanning 11 counties in all. It also includes seven national forests: Eldorado, Klamath, Lassen, Modoc, Plumas, Shasta-Trinity, and Tahoe.
