User:Sarega247/sandbox

Andrew Sarega (born September 20, 1987) is an American politician who currently serves as a member of the La Mirada City Council representing the 2nd District. He was first elected to city council in March of 2013 and re-elected to the seat in March of 2017. In April 2015, Sarega was also elected to serve on the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) Regional Council and re-elected to the position in April 2017. Prior to serving as an elected official, Sarega served as a police officer in the city of Newport Beach, CA. During his career with the Newport Beach Police Department he served as a patrol officer, reserve coordinator, and on the gang suppression unit. He was also elected to serve on the board of the Newport Beach Police Association as Vice-President. In March 2012, Sarega was presented with the Life-Saving Award for his actions while on duty.

Early Life and Education
Growing up in La Mirada, CA and attending Sonora High School before graduating from La Mirada High School, Andrew Sarega obtained his B.A. in Criminal Justice from California State Unversity, Fullerton (CSUF) in 2012. In high school, Sarega was a 4 year letter in varsity soccer while also running varsity cross country and track and field. In 2005, he was awarded Player of the Year for high school soccer by the Long Beach Press Telegram and made First-Team All CIF. After spending two semesters at Biola University, Sarega moved to Romania and played professional soccer for a brief period. In March 2015, he obtained his Master of Public Administration degree from National University.

Law Enforcement Career
In August 2009, Sarega was hired by the Newport Beach Police Department as a police recruit. He attended the Orange County Sheriff Academy and graduated in February 2010 at which time he was sworn in as peace officer with the Newport Beach Police Department. During his career at NBPD, Sarega served in several capacities including patrol officer, reserve coordinator, and the gang suppression unit. In March 2012, he was presented with the Life-Saving Award for his actions while on duty. Sarega was medically retired in December of 2015 after suffering an injury during a physical altercation with a domestic violence suspect. While with the department, Sarega also served as the Vice-President for the Newport Beach Police Association.

Political Career
Andrew Sarega was first elected to the La Mirada City Council in March 2015 at the age of 25. He became the youngest elected official in the history of the city and the first person to ever defeat a sitting mayor in La Mirada. He ran on transparency and fiscal responsibility, helping to guide several reforms into the city. While on council, he introduced OpenGov to the city which allowed the public to have access to an easy to understand, interactive city budget. He also introduced and helped pass a resolution that required all council meetings to be recorded and streamed online to increase transparency in public meetings. In terms of fiscal responsibility, he was the sole vote against several items that increased employee costs and benefits while also opposing a sales tax increase in the city.

Districts
In August 2017, the City of La Mirada was threatened with litigation by the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF) for alleged violations of the California Voter Rights Act. MALDEF demanded the city change from an at-large election to district elections. At that time, Councilman Sarega was the only candidate to vote against the division of the city. The resolution passed 4-1 and new districts were drawn for the city. The new districts forced Councilman Sarega to seek re-election against another council member in the city. In March 2017, Councilman Sarega defeated Councilwoman Pauline Deal and was re-elected to his second term on the La Mirada City Council.

California Contract Cities Association (CCCA)
California Contract Cities Association is an organization focused on preserving the rights of cities and counties to exercise their constitutional authorities. In 2013, Sarega was appointed to the executive board of the organization and served as the Chairman of the Membership Committee. Sarega attended several of the yearly seminars and legislative tours that help promote local control to state legislators.

League of California Cities
Like CCCA, the League of California Cities is the largest organization in California that represents local jurisdictions in the state's capital. In 2014, Sarega was appointed to the League's Revenue and Taxation Policy Committee as well as the Public Safety Policy Committee. These committees are comprised of stakeholders from all across the state that advise the League's executive board on what actions to take regarding up coming legislation. Councilman Sarega continues to serve on the Public Safety Policy Committee and has been advocating for local control of public safety as well as increased safety for local communities.

Gateway Cities Council of Governments (Gateway COG)
A Council of Governments or COG is a federally mandated organization that deals with regional transportation projects as well as sustainable community development. In 2013, Sarega was appointed to serve on the Gateway COG and during his tenure helped bring forth many infrastructure projects for the Gateway Cities region of Los Angeles County. He served on this organization's Board of Directors until 2015 and had been appointed to the Executive Board, Transportation Committee, and Sustainable Communities Committee during that time.

Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG)
SCAG is the largest Metropolitan Planning Organization in the United States of America. It is responsible for the development and planning of nearly all major development in all of Southern California. Andrew Sarega was elected to serve on the Regional Council of SCAG in April 2015, representing District 31 which includes the cities of La Mirada, Whittier, Pico Rivera, La Habra Heights, and Santa Fe Springs. Sarega was elected by council members from those cities which he represented. He was re-elected to the position in April of 2017 and set most of his focus on California's housing crisis.

U.S. Congress
Andrew Sarega announced his candidacy for CA's 39th Congressional District in January of 2018, after the announcement of Rep. Ed Royce's retirement.