Assemblymember Steve Bennett was elected to the Assembly in November 2020 and represents the 38th district that includes the western part of Ventura County. Steve launched his bid for the Assembly with a recognition that the window to effectively address climate change is rapidly closing. His first climate change efforts focus on improving storage capacity of renewable energy which is an essential step to achieving the goal of 100% renewable energy. Steve was a high school Economics and American History teacher for over 20 years and he was elected to the Ventura City Council in 1993 and served until 1997. There he co-authored the Save Open Space and Agricultural Resources (SOAR) initiatives that have made Ventura County a national leader in land-use planning. SOAR slows urban sprawl by requiring a vote of the citizens before greenbelt areas outside of the cities can be rezoned for development. From 2000 to 2020, Assemblymember Bennett served his community as a Ventura County Supervisor.