Descriptive Summary
Administrative Information
Biography
Scope and Content
Arrangement
Indexing Terms
Related Material
Descriptive Summary
Title: Albert S. Rodda papers,
Date (inclusive): 1959-1980
Collection number: LP186:68-235
Creator:
Rodda, Albert S.
Extent:
7.75 cubic feet
Repository:
California State Archives
Abstract: Albert S. Rodda, Democrat, was a State Senator, 1959-1980. Senator Rodda introduced legislation in the areas of education,
local government, labor, recreation, and water.
Physical location: California State Archives
Language:
English.
Administrative Information
Access
Collection is open for research.
Publication Rights
For permission to reproduce or publish, please contact the California State Archives. Permission for reproduction or publication
is given on behalf of the California State Archives as the owner of the physical items. The researcher assumes all responsibility
for possible infringement which may arise from reproduction or publication of materials from the California State Archives
collections.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Albert S. Rodda Papers, LP186:[folder number], California State Archives, Office of the Secretary
of State, Sacramento, California.
Acquisition Information
The California State Archives acquired the Albert S. Rodda Papers following his final Senate term.
Alternative Forms of Material Available
Records are available on microfilm at the California State Archives.
Biography
Albert S. Rodda, Democrat, was a State Senator, 1959-1980. His district included cities within Sacramento County. Rodda
was elected to the 19th Senate District, which after redistricting became the 5th Senate District, followed by the 3rd Senate
District
A native of California, Senator Rodda was born in Sacramento on July 12, 1912. He attended local public schools and graduated
from Sacramento High School in 1929. He attended Stanford University where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1933. Senator Rodda
worked as a teacher in Sacramento public high schools for several years before he went into the U.S. Naval Reserve and served
in World War II as a gunnery officer. He left the Navy in 1946, and taught at Sacramento City College until he retired in1967
to become a full-time legislator. In 1951, Senator Rodda earned his Ph.D. in history and economics from Stanford University.
While teaching at Grant Union High school he met his future wife. Rodda and Clarice Horgan, an English teacher, were married
in 1941. They have one son and two daughters.
Senator Rodda was elected in 1958 to the State Senate in a special election to replace Earl Desmond who had died in office.
Rodda defeated Louis Desmond, the deceased Senator's son, and two other Democrats.
Senator Rodda served as Chairman of the Democratic Central Committee and was a member of the Democratic County Central Committee.
During his term in the Legislature, Senator Rodda served on a number of committees. According to the Legislative Handbooks,
he served on the following committees:
California State Senate, 1967-1980
-
Standing Committees
- Education, 1967,1969
- *Chair, 1970-1979
- Energy, 1975-1976
- Finance, 1971-1976
- *Chair, 1977-1979
- Industrial Relations, 1970-1976
- Local Government, 1970, 1973-1976
- Natural Resources and Wildlife, 1970-1971, 1976-1979
- Public Utilities, 1975-1976
- Transit, 1975-1976
Scope and Content
The Albert S. Rodda Papers consist of Senate Bill and Legislative Counsel Files, 1959-1980. The bill files document his legislative
activity during his term as a member of the California State Legislature. Senator Rodda introduced legislation in the areas
of education, local government, labor, recreation, and water.
Arrangement
Arranged into one series of bill files.
Indexing Terms
The following terms have been associated with these materials in the Archives'
automated public access system (currently in development, June 2004).
Subjects
Rodda, Albert S.
California - - Legislature - - Senate
Educational - - law and legislation
Local government - - Law and Legislation
Related Material
Albert Rodda, "Sacramento Senator: State Leadership in Education and Finance," an oral history conducted in 1981 by Gabrielle
Morris, in The Assembly, the State Senate, and the Governor's Office, 1958-1974, Regional Oral History Office, The Bancroft
Library, University of California, Berkeley, 1982.