A look inside the state Capitol A look inside the state Capitol (September 03, 2004)

Legislative session ends, Lieber heads home

By Julie O'Shea

The state Capitol rises up in the middle of downtown Sacramento like a mausoleum, quiet, peaceful and formidable. Walk inside the domed building, however, and it's a whole different world -- the adrenaline-driven, caffeine-crazed, sleep-deprived world of the California Legislature.

It was around 3 p.m. on Aug. 26. Lawmakers had just spent the last couple of hours trying to pass dozens of bills before the end of the legislative session on Aug. 31. They were not allowed to leave the Assembly floor without a pass, not even to use the restroom.

Sally Lieber, Mountain View's former mayor who is now the third highest-ranking Democrat in the Assembly, stood at the front of the room, facing her colleagues, and stated in a clear authoritative voice: "Those members who desire to vote, please vote. Those members who desire to vote, please vote."

But no one seemed to be paying much attention, and Lieber, the Assembly's assistant speaker pro tempore who was in charge of that afternoon's proceeding, continued to repeat herself. All of a sudden, the big black screen behind Lieber was spurred into motion, tallying up the votes, green for "aye" and red for "nay." With the vote counted, Lieber, dressed in a conservative gray pants suit and orange scarf, immediately moved onto the next agenda item.

Activity on the Assembly floor, an expansive green and yellow room lined with rows of wooden desks (Lieber sits in the desk that once belonged to former Assembly speaker and San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown), began shortly before 10 a.m. that morning, following the Pledge of Allegiance and a prayer from a Greek Orthodox chaplain.

Legislators were hoping to get done by 10 p.m., but the Aug. 26 file was thick with nearly 200 bills that needed to be reviewed or voted on by the Assembly. And there were rumors that the night could drag on until 2 a.m. (Lawmakers finally managed to close the session around 3:30 a.m. on Aug. 28.)

"You are dealing with 120 pretty big egos in the Legislature," Lieber commented during a mid-morning break last week. "Presiding is kind of terrifying. You are up there where very famous people have presided over these chambers."

Nevertheless, she added, "I love being on the (Assembly) floor. You are voting on bills. You are dealing with big issues, small issues. Anything can come up. It's really fun."

Each year hundreds of bills are introduced in the Assembly (nicknamed the "House of Commons" by Capitol insiders) before they move onto the Senate (a.k.a."The House of Lords"), where they can be approved, reworked or killed. Of course, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who Capitol staffers say is in bed each night by 8 p.m., gets the final say. State law states that the governor has 30 days after the session ends to finalize or veto the bills on his desk.

With the Assembly on hiatus until January, Lieber -- whose district covers Mountain View, Sunnyvale, Cupertino and portions of San Jose, Santa Clara and Los Altos -- will be spending more time on the Peninsula, working on her new bills for 2005, meeting with constituents and doing a little campaigning to win a second term in November.

After a "total dog fight" during the 2002 election, when she ran against Santa Clara city council member Rod Diridon, Jr. and fellow Mountain View council member Rosemary Stasek, Lieber said she is ready for another two years on the Assembly floor. She faces Republican Marie Dominguez-Gasson, a retail salesperson and a student, at the polls on Nov. 2.

"This is considered a 'safe Democratic seat,' but she is not going to take anything for granted," said Lieber's chief of staff Matt Moretti, adding that he and much of her staff will be walking precincts in the coming weeks.

If re-elected, she can run again in 2006 before getting termed out. Last week, Lieber hinted at the possibility of seeking a future Senate seat.

"I'd like to, if I got a chance," she said, before looking at someone standing on the other side of the Assembly floor. "Oh, I've got to go," she quickly mumbled. In a matter of seconds, Lieber, summoned to the governor's first-floor office to tweak a bill's language, had disappeared into a sea of black and navy suits.

According to her staff, the close of session is always a" complete zoo" at the Capitol. This time around, Lieber was essentially stuck on the Assembly floor for five days straight, voting on dozens of new state bills and ordering Chinese takeout when lunch wasn't provided on the floor.

"I think she's really shocked people. I don't think people are willing to take her on," Moretti said. "I don't think it's out of fear but out of respect. She'll defend herself and defend her (causes)."

Added Walter Hughes, a consultant for Assembly speaker Fabian Nunez, "She has a point of view and she is not afraid to advocate for her point of view."

Lieber shares a Sacramento apartment with Hannah-Beth Jackson (D-Santa Barbara) but tries to get home to her husband David Phillips in Mountain View a few times a week and aims to take every Sunday completely off.

"What a life of a politician. It's such a grind," said Darin Walsh, an office administrator for Lieber. "She has never had a weekend off, not since I worked for her."

E-mail Julie O'Shea at joshea@mv-voice.com

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