Representing Sacramento, Senator Steinberg became California's Senate leader in 2008 at the beginning of the economic downturn. Two years later, he was honored with the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage award in recognition of his leadership in bipartisan negotiations leading to California’s fiscal recovery. Steinberg has earned a reputation for confronting intractable problems with consensus-building, leading to bipartisan agreements on protecting California’s water supply, establishing landmark policy to combat urban sprawl and reduce greenhouse gases, streamlining regulations while maintaining vital environmental protections, and fostering reforms to public education and mental health services. Steinberg was recently named by the Wall Street Journal as one of “13 to Watch in 2013,” as his political leadership in key campaigns delivered the first Democratic “supermajority” in the California Legislature in more than 100 years.