[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 30 (Thursday, February 13, 2020)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E180]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          HONORING BONNIE LOWENTHAL'S CAREER OF PUBLIC SERVICE

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. ALAN S. LOWENTHAL

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, February 13, 2020

  Mr. LOWENTHAL. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Bonnie Lowenthal 
and her career of public service.
   Ms. Lowenthal began her public service to the Long Beach, California 
community nearly five decades ago, serving as a licensed family 
counselor, mental health consultant, and as an educator.
   Her work in the Long Beach community began a life-long focus on 
affordable housing and the problem of homelessness. She was appointed 
as Vice Chair of the Mayor's Task Force on Homelessness in 1987 and 
worked to find mechanisms to house people and prevent homelessness.
   Her community work also led Ms. Lowenthal to a deep involvement with 
the Long Beach Cambodian community and in 1989 she was named Director 
of Planning for the United Cambodian Community organization while also 
serving as the Arts Manager representing a group of Cambodian musicians 
and founding the Cambodian Children's Orchestra. In 1991, Ms. Lowenthal 
traveled to Cambodia with a national Red Cross group to investigate the 
proliferation of landmines left behind during the decades of war that 
had engulfed the country. She also helped initiate a sister-city 
relationship between Long Beach and Phnom Penh and would go on to be an 
official observer during Cambodia's first municipal elections in more 
than 40 years. Ms. Lowenthal has also served as Clinical Director for 
the Cambodian Association of America and as a participant on the 
Cambodiatown Advisory Board.
   In 1994, Ms. Lowenthal was elected to the first of two terms on the 
Long Beach Unified School District Board. Her dedication and commitment 
to students helped Long Beach earn a national reputation as one of the 
country's best urban school districts.
   After winning a 2001 special election for the 1st District of the 
Long Beach City Council, Ms. Lowenthal would go on to win two full 
terms for the seat in 2002 and 2006. Selected by her colleagues as Vice 
Mayor in 2006, she was also elected by 27 regional cities to the Los 
Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority Board. She has 
stated that her mission on the Long Beach City Council was to make sure 
that the residents of her working-class district were as well 
represented at City Hall as residents of the city's wealthiest 
neighborhoods.
   In 2008, Ms. Lowenthal was elected to her first of three terms in 
the California State Assembly. Her district, encompassing what is now 
the 70th Assembly District, remains one of the most ethnically diverse 
populations in the state.
   During her three terms in the State Assembly, Ms. Lowenthal's 
district included the Long Beach/Los Angeles port complex--the busiest 
container complex in the Western Hemisphere. As an Assemblymember, she 
was instrumental in helping create more than 18,000 transportation-
related jobs, while also protecting the employment rights of thousands 
of other port workers.
   In addition to transportation issues, during her tenure in the State 
Assembly she focused on standing up for children, seniors, and the 
environment. She authored laws that protected coastal waters from 
invasive species; made it easier for older adults to stay in their 
homes; encouraged state workers to blow the whistle on wrongdoing; and 
made it easier for school districts to provide children with a safe 
ride to school. She also authored important legislation that brought 
additional federal funds to foster youth, protected injured workers 
from unjust medical bills, and reduced the cost of prison healthcare by 
millions of dollars a year.
   Her leadership positions in the State Assembly included chairing the 
Legislative Women's Caucus, the Assembly Committee on Transportation, 
the Joint Committee on Emergency Management, and the Select Committee 
on Ports. She served as a member of the committees on Accountability 
and Administrative Review, Environmental Safety & Toxic Materials, 
Health, and other select committees.
   For her service in the State Legislature, Ms. Lowenthal was named 
Legislator of the Year by the California Assisted Living Association, 
the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists, and the 
California Chiropractic Association, among many others.
   In 2017, Ms. Lowenthal was named to the Long Beach Board of Harbor 
Commissioners by Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia, and elected President 
of the Board in July 2019, following a year of service as Vice 
President of the board.
   As a member of the five-member board, Ms. Lowenthal is responsible 
for the management and oversight of City's Harbor Department which 
operates the Port of Long Beach, the nation's second-busiest port. She 
was unanimously confirmed by the City Council as the 68th appointee to 
the Board since the current Commission was established in 1925. Her 
appointment made her the seventh woman to serve on the Commission and 
marked the first time in the port's history that the five-member Board 
had four female members at the same time.
   Besides serving on various Commission sub-committees, Ms. Lowenthal 
also represents the port on national and international trade missions 
and serves as the board representative or alternate to a variety of 
port-related leadership organizations.
   In addition to her work on the Board of Harbor Commissioners, Ms. 
Lowenthal serves her community on the St. Mary's Medical Center 
Governing Board, the U.S. Vets Advisory Board, the Children Today Board 
of Directors, the LINC Housing Board of Directors, and the Jewish 
Family and Children's Service Board of Directors.
   I want to thank Ms. Lowenthal for her nearly five decades of 
commitment to her community and for the dedication to public service 
that has allowed her to give so much to that community.

                          ____________________