Five good reasons to end term limits

We don’t shy from criticizing, admonishing and even ridiculing the 120 women and men who represent us in the Capitol. But today, with the legislative session finally over, we want to mention a handful of departing lawmakers who deserve a fond farewell.

They share certain traits: willingness to work hard, understand complex issues and – most important – cultivate relations. Each understands that compromise is not a sign of weakness.

Assemblywoman Kristen Olsen, R-Riverbank, got a lot accomplished, but none was more important than the key role she played in helping Gov. Jerry Brown fashion the $7.5 billion water bond. She not only reached out to a governor of a different party, she helped mobilize the unofficial Valley Caucus – with senators Cathleen Galgiani, Anthony Cannella and Assemblyman Adam Gray – who did much of the heavy lifting.

As the Assembly Republican caucus leader, many expected Olsen to be at the point of a partisan spear. But that role didn’t suit her. Instead, she built alliances. Again with the Valley caucus, she fought against rampant abuse of the Americans with Disabilities Act, a hunting grounds for predatory lawyers and their phony clients. She was also one of the few willing to stand imbuing pit-bull with almost human rights.

Outgoing and energetic, Olsen would be a natural for higher office ... if any Republicans had a shot at statewide office. But that works for our benefit. She will replace Stanislaus County Supervisor Bill O’Brien next year (though the handoff might have seemed a bit too smooth for many).

Sen. Mark Leno, a San Francisco Democrat, is departing after 14 years, eight in the Senate. Reflecting his constituency, Leno has been one of the Legislature’s most liberal members, focusing on gay rights and reform in the criminal justice system. He led the effort to raise California’s minimum wage and pushed legislation that led to restrictions on toxic flame retardants in consumer products. He worked with one of the senate’s most conservative members, San Diego Republican Joel Anderson, to guard individual privacy by requiring search warrants to pick through smartphones.

Sen. Fran Pavley of D-Agoura Hills had an impact far beyond California. Her 2002 legislation forced automakers to reduce greenhouse gas emissions for cars sold here. That led to standards announced by President Barack Obama that will double the miles per gallon of new cars by 2025.

In 2014, she and Assemblyman Roger Dickinson co-authored the first restrictions on groundwater in California’s history. By 2022, counties will responsible for guaranteeing that groundwater will remain sustainable in all their basins. California became the last western state to have such regulations.

Sen. Lois Wolk, D-Davis, also spent much of her time on water legislation, a thankless task, and became a defender of the economic and environmental interests of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. While we would have preferred that she give more consideration to the needs of the tributaries, she always fair and honest.

Rich Gordon, a San Mateo Democrat, chaired the Assembly Rules Committee. He got the most bills signed of any legislator in the six years he served. Yet, he is better known for his sense of fair play. Even Republicans appreciated it, offering heartfelt tributes this week from the Assembly floor.

In 1990 voters approved term limits, thinking it would improve governance. It didn’t. Olsen, Leno, Wolk, Pavley and Gordon are five arguments against such faux reform. The ballot box offers the only term limits we need. These five prove it.

This story was originally published September 1, 2016 at 3:32 PM with the headline "Five good reasons to end term limits."