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Since 1998, Ma has been on the forefront in promoting trade and commerce between California and Asia, leading legislative delegations to China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. She has been a frequent speaker in the region promoting US interests in high-speed rail, agriculture, entertainment and education. She has also taken the lead to welcome foreign dignitaries visiting California in her elected capacities.
Since 1998, Ma has been on the forefront in promoting trade and commerce between California and Asia, leading legislative delegations to China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. She has been a frequent speaker in the region promoting US interests in high-speed rail, agriculture, entertainment and education. She has also taken the lead to welcome foreign dignitaries visiting California in her elected capacities.
She has participated in various California trade delegations and has met with legislative leaders and decision-makers in India, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, France, Israel, Ireland and Iceland.
She has participated in various California trade delegations and has met with legislative leaders and decision-makers in India, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, France, Israel, Ireland and Iceland

==Legislative Session 2011–12==
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Assemblywoman Ma had 25 bills chaptered into law, 4 Assembly Concurrent Resolutions and 1 Assembly Joint Resolution signed by Governor Brown. A few are as follows:

'''AB 74 Public event action plans and cooperative management'''
In response to substance abuse-related deaths, injuries and arrests involving electronic-music shows at San Francisco's Cow Palace and the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The Assembly voted 75-0 to support AB 74. The bill establishes safety guidelines for electronic-music concerts when they are held on publicly owned properties such as the Cow Palace, which is located in Ma's 12th Assembly District. "California needs to better monitor and control events occurring on state properties," Ma said in a news release. "AB 74 is intended to prevent the loss of life and make safety a top priority at events on state property." The law requires the state agency intending to host any rave expected to draw 10,000 people or more to assess potential problems, the need for law enforcement and medical personnel, and other related issues. If the agency concludes there's a strong possibility for loss of life or harm to participants, the show's promoter would be required to prepare a plan to provide an adequate law-enforcement presence, control drug use and potentially prohibit minors.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mercurynews.com/san- mateo-county/ci_18151243?nclick_check=1 |title=Ma's bill targeting raves passes Assembly - San Jose Mercury News |publisher=Mercurynews.com |date= |accessdate=2012-08-30}}</ref>

'''AB 183 (2011) Alcoholic beverage licenses: self-service checkout'''
This bill prohibits off-sale licensees from selling alcoholic beverages using a customer-operated checkout stand located on the licensee's physical premises. This bill makes findings and declarations regarding the effects of allowing alcoholic beverages to be sold using self-service checkouts.

'''AB 199 (2011) Role of Filipinos in World War II'''
This bill encourages social science instruction in grades 7–12 to include the role of Filipinos in World War II.

'''AB 300 (2011) Safe Body Art Act'''
This bill enacts the Safe Body Art Act providing minimum statewide standards for the regulation of individuals in the business of tattooing, body piercing, and the application of permanent cosmetics. The provisions will take effect on July 1, 2012.

'''AB 593 (2012) Domestic violence: battering: recall and resentencing'''
This bill expands the provisions allowing a habeas corpus petition in cases where intimate partner battering was not introduced into evidence to include cases where the evidence was not competent or substantial and where such evidence may have changed the sentence not just the conviction.

'''AB 812 (2012) Recycled asphalt'''
This bill authorizes the Department of Transportation to establish specifications for the use of up to 40% reclaimed asphalt pavement for hot asphalt mixes on or before January 1, 2014.

'''AB 845 (2012) Origin of Waste'''
This bill mandates that a county cannot discriminate against waste being brought to their landfills based on county of origin where it is generated, to ensure recycling needs are met, and effective and environmentally sound facilities continue to be utilized.

'''AB 907 (2012) Processors of farm products'''
It authorizes the Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) to impose sanctions three times the amount of unpaid or underpaid license fees and requires any bond or irrevocable guarantee, placed in lieu of proof of financial responsibility, to include both past and future debts owed as a requirement of obtaining a processor's license.

'''AB 1593 (2012) Parole: intimate partner battering'''
This bill requires the Board of Parole Hearings (BPH), when reviewing a prisoner's suitability for parole, to give great weight to any information or evidence that, at the time of the commission of the crime, the prisoner had experienced intimate partner battering and provide that they cannot use the fact that the prisoner brought in the evidence to find that a prisoner lacks insight to his or her crime.

'''AB 2564 (2012) Environmental quality: pipelines: project applicants'''
This bill expands the application of an existing California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) exemption for pipeline projects less than one mile in length.

'''ACR 42 (2011) Eat Local, Buy California Grown Day'''
This resolution declares that Sundays are "Eat Local, Buy California Grown Day," and encourages families, restaurants, and grocers to buy California-grown foods because supporting California-grown food products will result in higher food quality, improved food safety, and higher environmental and animal welfare standards, in addition to significant economic benefits.

==Legislative Session 2009–10==
In this legislative session, 19 of the − Assemblywoman's bills were signed into law and 5 Assembly Concurrent Resolutions were chaptered. A few of are as follows:
'''AB 144 (2009) Vehicles: − distinguishing placards and license plates'''
This bill provides cities and counties with greater authority to cite disabled parking offenses with civil parking citations, sets minimum penalty amounts for these civil offenses, and extends an existing 10 percent special penalty assessment to additional criminal and civil citations.

'''AB 258 (2009) Domestic violence: restraining or protective order: aggressor'''
This bill amends Penal Code Section 836, concerning arrests in situations where mutual protective orders have been issued, to change the phrase "primary aggressor" to "dominant aggressor."

'''AB 1050 (2010) Child custody: preferences of child'''
This bill, among other things, requires the family court to permit a child who is 14 years of age or older to address the court regarding custody or visitation unless the court determines that doing so is not in the child's best interest, in which case the court will be required to make that finding on the record.

'''ACR 64 (2009) Heptatitis B'''
This resolution declares May 2009, to be Hepatitis B Awareness Month in California, recognizes May 19, 2009, as World Hepatitis Awareness Day, and calls on all interested parties to come together to raise awareness and educate the public on hepatitis B and to make recommendations on ways to implement best practices in hepatitis B prevention and treatment.
At the age of 22, Ma learned she had hepatitis B (HBV), a virus that causes 80% of all liver cancer if left untreated and one that shows no symptoms until it's almost too late. Approximately 1.4 million Americans are infected with HBV, and more than half of them are Asian/Pacific Islander (API) Americans. It is estimated that 1 in 10 APIs are chronically infected with HBV. Like most APIs, Ma contracted HBV from her mother at birth via perinatal exposure. San Francisco has the highest rate of liver cancer in the nation because of its high API population, and HBV-related liver cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among API men living in California.
Ma works to remove the stigma of the disease in the Asian − community by actively speaking out about the importance of testing and vaccination.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sfexaminer.com/local/Fighting-to-eliminate-hepatitis-93624149.html |title=Fighting to eliminate hepatitis |author=Mike Aldax|date=May 13, 2010 |work=The San Francisco Examiner |accessdate=2010-05-23 |url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100524153519/http://www.sfexaminer.com/local/Fighting-to-eliminate-hepatitis-93624149.html |archivedate=2010-05-24 }} </ref> In 2008, Ma introduced Assembly Bill 158 which requires the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) to apply for a federal waiver to expand Medi-Cal eligibility for individuals with chronic hepatitis B. AB 158 did not make it through the legislative process due to costs associated with the bill.
ill.
The resolution supports collaborating with all interested parties to raise public awareness about HBV. It also supports<br> the development of a comprehensive, statewide HBV prevention and treatment plan.
Ma serves as honorary chairperson for [http://sfhepbfree.org San Francisco Hep B Free] - the largest, most intensive health care campaign for APIs in the U.S. and one that is looked upon as a model for the nation in eliminating HBV. <ref>{{cite web|url=http://minorityhealth.hhs.gov/templates/content.aspx?ID=8244&lvl=3&lvlID=287 |title=City-wide Campaign Becomes National Hep B Model - The Office of Minority Health - OMH |publisher=Minorityhealth.hhs.gov − |accessdate=2012-08-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120915 223327/http://minorityhealth.hhs.gov/tem plates/content.aspx? ID=8244&lvl=3&lvlID=287 |archive- date=2012-09-15 |url-status=dead }} </ref> In May 2010, San Francisco Hep B Free launched its controversial " [https://web.archive.org/web/20170114081 300/http://www.sfhepbfree.org/preview201 0 Which One Deserves to Die]" ad campaign which received national coverage that featured Ma in the NY Times <ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/03/u s/03hepatitis.html | title=In Ads, Plea for Asians to Get Tests for Hepatitis | first=Jesse | last=McKinley | date=2010- 05-02 | work=The New York Times}}</ref> and on CBS, ABC, PBS, NPR, Sirius Radio, and more.

'''ACR 70 (2009) Asian and Pacific Islander American Heritage Month'''
This resolution commends Asian and Pacific Islander Americans for their notable accomplishments and outstanding service to the state; and, recognizes the month of May 2009 as Asian and Pacific Islander American Heritage Month.

==Legislative Session 2007–08==
The Assemblywoman had 16 of her bills signed, 3 Assembly Concurrent Resolution, and 1 Assembly Joint Resolution chaptered. A few of Assemblywoman Ma's bills are as follows:

'''AB 101 (2007) Vehicles: parking enforcement: video image evidence'''
This bill allows San Francisco to install automated forward facing parking control devices on city-owned public transit for the purpose of taking video images of parking violations occurring in transit-only traffic lanes.

'''AB 1108 (2007) Children's products: phthalates'''
A bill that prohibited the manufacture, sale, and distribution of toys and child care products intended for use by children under the age of three that contain toxic chemicals known as phthalates. These substances are used in soft plastic toys and other baby products such as bath books, rubber ducks, and baby teethers.
Scientific research shows that these chemicals can have a negative effect on human health and may increase the risk of premature birth, early onset of puberty, lower sperm count, increased reproductive defects, and even cancer. These chemicals are already banned in 14 countries and the European Union, which has made the United States a toxic toy dumping ground. Four of the six phthalates banned in the bill have already been placed on California's Proposition 65 list as reproductive toxins.

'''AB 1062 (2008) School facilities: uniform standards: solar design plans'''
Requires the Department of General Services' (DGS) Division of State Architect (DSA), on or before January 1, 2010, to develop uniform criteria for precheck approval process for solar design plans, including structural plans and calculations, for school facility projects' compliance with existing law and regulations

'''AB 1771 (2008) Domestic violence: restraining orders'''
This bill expressly authorizes a court in a domestic violence case to consider the underlying nature of the offense charged, and specified related information required under current law for these cases, in determining whether good cause exists to issue a protective order, as specified.

'''AB 3034 (2008) Safe, Reliable High-Speed Passenger Train Bond Act for the 21st Century'''
At the start of her first term, Assemblywoman Ma convened the bi-cameral and bi-partisan high-speed rail caucus. The caucus worked to protect and restore budget funding for the High Speed Rail Authority and fought to keep the High Speed Rail bond on the November 2008 ballot. Assemblywoman Ma joint-authored AB 3034, the Safe Reliable, High-Speed Train Bond Act for the 21st Century—Prop 1-A on the November 2008 ballot. Assemblywoman Ma was a leader in the campaign to pass Prop 1-A, which was approved with 53% of the vote. She continues to work on the effort to capture federal funding the High Speed Rail Authority.

'''ACR 6 (2007) Teenage dating violence'''
This resolution recognizes February 5 to 9, 2007, as Teenage Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Week.

'''ACR 28 (2007) National Day of Human Trafficking Awareness'''
This resolution recognizes "National Day of Human Trafficking Awareness" on January 11 of each year in order to encourage greater awareness of human trafficking and all other forms of modern-day slavery.


==References==
==References==

Revision as of 17:51, 17 December 2020

Fiona Ma
馬世雲
34th Treasurer of California
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 7, 2019
GovernorGavin Newsom
Preceded byJohn Chiang
Chair of the California Board of Equalization
In office
February 24, 2016 – February 23, 2017
Preceded byJerome Horton
Succeeded byDiane Harkey
Member of the
California Board of Equalization
from the 2nd district
In office
January 5, 2015 – January 7, 2019
Preceded byBetty Yee (redistricted)
Succeeded byMalia Cohen
Speaker pro tempore of the
California State Assembly
In office
March 27, 2010 – August 10, 2012
Preceded byLori Saldaña
Succeeded byNora Campos
Member of the California State Assembly
from the 12th district
In office
December 4, 2006 – November 30, 2012
Preceded byLeland Yee
Succeeded byPhil Ting
Member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors
from the 4th district
In office
December 2, 2002 – December 4, 2006
Preceded byLeland Yee
Succeeded byEd Jew
Personal details
Born (1966-03-04) March 4, 1966 (age 58)
New York City, New York, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseJason Hodge
EducationRochester Institute of Technology (BS)
Golden Gate University (MS)
Pepperdine University (MBA)
WebsiteGovernment website
Fiona Ma
Traditional Chinese馬世雲
Simplified Chinese马世云
Hanyu PinyinMǎ Shìyún
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinMǎ Shìyún
Wade–GilesMa3 Shi4yun2

Fiona Ma (born March 4, 1966) is an American politician and Certified Public Accountant who has been serving as the California State Treasurer since January 7, 2019. She was elected to this post on November 6, 2018[1] with more votes than any other candidate for Treasurer in the state's history.[2] She served as a member of the California Board of Equalization from 2015 to 2019.[3] Ma served in the California State Assembly (2006–2012)[4] and on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors (2002–2006).[5]

A member of the Democratic Party, Ma was the first Asian American woman to serve as California Assembly Speaker Pro Tempore,[6] the second highest-ranking office in the California Assembly.[7] Ma is also only the second Certified Public Accountant (CPA) to be elected to the Board of Equalization.[8] She was selected as Chairperson of the California Board of Equalization in 2016,[9] ordered three external audits of the agency,[10] and helped lead the biggest reforms for accountability and efficiency in that agency's history.[11] Ma received more than 7.8 million votes in her election to become California's 34th Treasurer.[2] She oversees more than $2 trillion of revenue running through the Treasurer's office every year. She stated her overarching goal is "to recognize the future and make sure it is distributed evenly."[12]

California State Treasurer

Main article: 2018 California State Treasurer election

On May 17, 2016, Ma announced she was opening her campaign to run for California treasurer in the 2018 election.[13] On June 5, 2018, she finished first in the nonpartisan open primary,[14] and then defeated Republican Greg Conlon in the November 6 election[15] receiving 7,825,587 votes – the most votes ever earned by a candidate for treasurer of California.[2] On January 7, 2019, she was sworn in as the first woman of color and only the 2nd CPA to ever serve as California State Treasurer. In the Assembly, Ma was one of California's most powerful legislators, and as State Treasurer, she continued developing new laws and policies. In 2019 she sponsored 15 pieces of legislation, supported 25 bills, and provided technical support to 30 others, focusing on her priority areas of fiscal accountability, green financing, high-speed rail, affordable housing and consumer protections.[16]

Head banker and strengthening state finances

As State Banker for California,[17] Ma immediately put her stamp on how the state of California issues bonds. In her first year in office, Wall Street's Fitch Ratings and Moody's upgraded California's general obligation bonds, citing improved fiscal management,[18] and stating California's budget reserves had "never been stronger".[19] Ma stated her goal to help create "lower borrowing costs, a favorable interest rate environment, improved ratings, and a continued commitment to building reserves".[20] In the first quarter of 2019, Ma sold more bonds than any other state treasurer in America,[21] including a different bond issuance almost every week during March and April.[22] From July to December of 2019, her office sold an additional $7.65 billion of bonds.[16] In November 2019, the nonpartisan California Legislative Analyst's Office reported on the Treasurer's cost-cutting impact stating: “the State Treasurer has been able to refinance much of the state’s bond debt. Consequently, much of the state’s outstanding debt now carries a lower interest rate resulting in lower annual costs." [23] Overall in 2019, Ma's office oversaw $85 billion in bonds and $85 billion to $100 billion (an all-time high) in short term investments.[16] "I believe in checks and balances, accountability and also being proactive," Ma told Bloomberg news.[24] Ma's priorities for California's bond program include:

  • saving taxpayer's billions of dollars by refinancing at lowering interest rates[25][26]
  • solving the housing crisis with more bonds allocated to affordable and low cost housing[27][28]
  • green bonds that promote environmental benefits for the people of California[29][30]
  • broadening efforts to include women, minority and veteran-owned broker-dealer firms to manage bond issuances[21]
  • helping local city governments to manage their finances soundly[31][32]
  • statewide infrastructure projects and voter approved bonds such as clean water and high-speed rail.[33][34]

Green financing and environmental policy

Treasurer Ma chaired the inaugural meeting of the California Green Bond Market Development Committee on June 5, 2019 to “establish California as the world’s green bond leader”[30] by developing standards for what qualifies as green bonds,[35] and incorporating green bonds into the financing of state infrastructure projects.[36] Ma launched the Small Business Energy Efficiency Financing and the Affordable Multifamily Energy Efficiency Financing programs in October 2019 to help small business, nonprofits and affordable housing owners to reduce the cost of financing energy efficiency improvements.[37] She also co-sponsored the California Recycling Market Development Act to promote California's recycling programs, AB 1583 authored by Assemblymember Susan Eggman and signed in to law by Governor Newsom.[38] Ma also chairs the California Alternative Energy and Advanced Transportation Financing Authority (CAEATFA), which assists the state in meeting its greenhouse gas goals and works with the private market. CAEATFA operates the CA Hub for Energy Efficiency Financing Program, which has provided more than $825 million in sales tax exclusions for over 200 green projects that support solar manufacturing, geothermal, renewable fuels, and biogas production. Treasurer Ma also chairs the California Pollution Control Financing Authority (CPCFA), providing $16.2 billion in low-cost innovative financing to California businesses since 1972 to make California more economically prosperous and environmentally clean. CPCFA was the first statewide financing authority to sign the Green Bond Pledge, vowing to meet climate bond principles in all of its projects.[39] CPCFA awarded $73.7 million in tax-exempt green bond financing in 2019 to CalPlant I, LLC, a company that will turn rice straw into medium density fiberboard, employing 115 full- time workers, 450 part-time harvest-season workers, and supporting 325 construction jobs to build this first-of-a-kind project.[16]

Affordable housing

Ma's Treasurer Office oversees private activity bonds (through the California Debt Limit AllocationCommittee - CDLAC) and state housing tax credits (though the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee - CTCAC) that are used to build and maintain low-income housing and keep rents in these units affordable for 55 years.[16] In 2019, her office sold over $180 million of bonds for the California Department of Veterans Affairs (CalVet) program to provide affordable loans to veterans.[40] Ma also sold $500 million in revenue bonds for California's No Place Like Home (NPLH) program, a groundbreaking California effort to develop permanent supportive housing for homeless and mentally ill persons.[41]

Financial security and protections for consumers

In June 2019, Ma announced the official launch of the CalSavers Retirement Savings Program (CalSavers), which offers an IRA retirement savings option to employees who don't currently have one through their employer.[42] The program also offers an option for self-employed “gig” workers who don't work as traditional employees. In October 2019, Ma announced that California's family college savings plan known as California's ScholarShare 529 had received a gold rating from Morningstar Inc, making it one of the four top college savings plan in the nation.[43] In 2019, the “Scholar Dollars” program as part of ScholarShare 529 awarded more than $300,000 to 20 K-8 California public schools to fund technology, music, art, theater, computer science, sports, and other programs.[44]

As part of Governor Gavin Newsom's Master Plan for Aging,[45] Ma co-sponsored three bills addressing the needs of older adults, people with disabilities and family caregivers: AB 1287 (Nazarian), AB 1382 (Aguiar-Curry), and SB 611(Cabellero).[46] In 2019, the Treasurer Office's CalABLE program was expanded to allow anyone with a disability diagnosed before the age of 26 to open up an account and save up to $15,000 a year.[47]

High-speed rail

In her first year as treasurer, Ma appointed Dr. Beverly Scott and Frederick Jordan to the California High-Speed Rail Peer Review Group.[48] Ma also gave a big boost to the So-Cal-to-Las Vegas XpressWest high-speed rail project connecting Southern California and Las Vegas, Nevada when she announced approval of a $300 million bond issuance for the project.[49] The $4.8-billion, 170-mile long line running along Interstate 15 is slated to start construction in 2020 with trains running by 2023. “This is going to be the biggest shot in the arm that we have ever seen,” said Art Bishop, a councilman and former mayor in the San Bernardino County, California area, with an expected 600 permanent jobs generated and thousands of new homes in the region.[50]

Cannabis banking

Ma continued her efforts to regulate the legal marijuana industry, and on February 13, 2019 she was the highest ranking government official to testify at the first U.S. Congressional hearing to authorize “safe-harbor” banking services for marijuana businesses located in states which have legalized marijuana use.[51] Ma pointed out that “the cannabis market in California alone is expected to exceed $5.1 billion” by 2020,[52] but federal roadblocks prevent those funds from going through the banking system. Those huge amounts of cash are untraceable and can lead to violent crimes like armed-robbery and other illicit activities.[53] In addition, Ma pointed out that marijuana-related businesses are forced to pay employees in cash and therefore these employees are unable to pay into the Social Security system, unable to get car loans or home mortgages, and even unable to pay into alimony and child support.[54] In 2019, Ma sponsored SB 51, by Senator Majority Leader Bob Hertzberg, to allow private banks and credit unions to apply for state licensing which would allow licensed cannabis-related businesses to open accounts and deposit income.[55]

Collecting sales tax revenue from Amazon

On April 25, 2019, Governor Gavin Newsom signed legislation[56] that Ma had pushed to require out-of-state and online retailers like eBay, Etsy, and Amazon to collect sales taxes in line with the practices of local brick and mortar California businesses,[57] eliminating an unfair advantage that Amazon and other out-of-state and online businesses had claimed.[58] Ma had championed such legislation when she sat on the Board of Equalization, and during her time in the California Assembly since 2007.[59]

COVID-19 pandemic

During the COVID-19 pandemic beginning March 2020, all Treasurer Ma's operations were considered essential services and kept fully open and operational.[60] Ma’s office and agencies she chaired took the following actions:

  • assembled resources for taxpayer relief, food sources for needy families, and financial resources for small business.[61]
  • Extended deadlines for business for the CalSavers retirement program and supported Governor Newsom and the State Franchise Tax Board in extending deadlines for California tax returns.[62][63]
  • Launched $5 million emergency loan program for hospitals and health facilities in small, rural and district communities.[64]
  • Increased bond money available to build additional 4,054 units of affordable housing[65] including the first housing to target LGBT elders in the Davis region.[66]
  • Pushed forward on $600 million in bonds for the Southern California to Las Vegas high speed rail project including 1,250 workforce housing units, 30,000 construction jobs and 1,000 permanent jobs.[67]

Oversight of coronavirus contracts

By May 2020, California had spent $2.2 billion on safety gear to prevent coronavirus infection. No-bid contracts were used because of the emergency and unprecedented need for personal protective equipment.[68] The state’s standard purchasing processes were disrupted and Treasurer Ma’s office, which normally just carries out final stages of financial transactions, took on an oversight role.[69] “Not one dime – not one dime - of taxpayer dollars was lost," testified Mark Ghilarducci, director of the state's Office of Emergency Services.[70] Governor Newsom echoed these comments using the same words.[71] In three noted transactions, the state was made whole for any expenditures:

  • Blue Flame Medical LLC - $495 million refunded to California after questions raised about reliability.[72]
  • BYD Co. - 247.5 million of initial payment refunded due to delays in delivery.[73]
  • Bear Mountain Development Co. LLC – $800 million contract cancelled; Bear Mountain only reimbursed for masks that were delivered.[68]

During legislative hearings about state procurement practices during the pandemic, Treasurer Ma pushed for more accountability. “Any measures that seek to create more transparency, especially in public contracting, I think is always the right course of action.”[74]

In April 2020. Treasurer Ma posted pictures of herself on Facebook eating in at restaurant with staff members contrary to shelter-in place rules. The photos were later deleted.[75]

Early political career

Ma was appointed to the Assessment Appeals Board of San Francisco by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1995. That same year, she started her public service career as a part-time district representative for then-State Senator John Burton. She served as John Burton's district representative until her election to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 2002. She was responsible for helping constituents with Medi-Cal, Workers' Compensation, Unemployment Insurance, Franchise and Employment Development Department taxes, and professional licensing.

Early life and education

Ma is the oldest of three children born to William and Sophia Ma, both Chinese immigrants. Her grandfather, Lieutenant General Ma Zhen, was the first mayor of Kunming, Yunnan.[76]

Born and raised in New York, she attended Baker Elementary School before graduating from Great Neck North Middle and High Schools. Her father, Dr. William Ma, was a mechanical engineer who later specialized in construction claims and litigation before he retired. Her mother, Sophia (née Doo), was a high school art teacher for 20 years before moving the family to San Francisco to be closer to her parents. Rev William Doo was posted as a minister at the San Francisco Swatow Christian Church in San Francisco's Sunset District.[77]

Fiona Ma received a bachelor's degree in Accounting at Rochester Institute of Technology, a master's degree in Taxation from Golden Gate University, and a Master of Business Administration from Pepperdine University. She is a CPA[77] and member of the Aspen Institute's 2009 Class of Aspen-Rodel Fellows.

Professional career

In 1993 she worked at Ernst and Young, one of the "big six" accounting firms at the time. However, seeing few female managers and even fewer female partners during her time with the firm, she decided to start her own accounting practice with an associate.

In 1994 Fiona Ma was elected president of the Asian Business Association, which led to her first involvement with politics, lobbying San Francisco City Hall and the Sacramento State Capitol for business issues that affected women and minorities. As a result of her work on behalf of the Small Business Association at that same time, she was elected in 1995 as a delegate to the White House Conference on Small Business under President Bill Clinton. Fiona Ma's advocacy work in that role helped lead to socially responsible contracting for minorities and women in San Francisco, and produced a report to Congress on the 60 top policy recommendations to help small businesses grow and prosper in the 21st century.

Ma is an active member of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA), California Society of Certified Public Accountants (CalCPA), Governmental Accounting Standards Advisory Council (GASAC).[78] She was also a Hunt Keane Fellow in 2019, Cohort 6.

San Francisco Board of Supervisors

Ma was later elected to the San Francisco County Board of Supervisors from 2002 to 2006 representing District 4, the Sunset District, Outer Sunset, Parkside, Outer Parkside, and Pine Lake Park. While serving on that board, her major legislative push was a human rights campaign to shut down massage parlors who illegally trafficked persons into the country and used them to run illegal prostitution rings.[79] Following the passage of Proposition 209, which barred public institutions from considering sex, race or ethnicity, she led the effort to create the city's Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) program to enable small businesses to more easily participate in public works projects, aiming to broaden the scope of inclusion. As a Supervisor, she also started her advocacy regarding banning toxins from children's toys - passing Ordinance Number 060107 to "prohibit the manufacture, sale, or distribution in commerce of any toy or child-care article…if it contains bisphenol-A or other specified chemicals."[80]

California Assembly

Ma with Don Korotsky Norte in 2009

Fiona Ma was first elected to represent California's 19th Assembly District from November 2006 to November 2012 (serving the maximum three terms). She was the 112th woman to be elected to the California legislature and the first Asian woman to serve as Speaker pro Tempore since 1850.

Ma won the Democratic nomination to represent California's 19th Assembly District against fellow Democrat Janet Reilly in the state primary election of June 6, 2006. The campaign was one of the more expensive legislative primary races in the state of California.[81]

On November 7, 2006 Ma received 70 percent of the votes and defeated her two opponents for California Assembly, Republican Howard Epstein and Green Barry Hermanson. She replaced Leland Yee as 19th District assemblywoman.[82] Her district included San Francisco, Daly City, Colma and Broadmoor, totaling some 420,000 constituents.

Ma was appointed Assembly majority whip by the speaker of the assembly, Fabian Núñez, a position which she held for 4 years. As Majority Whip, she marshaled votes to ensure the passage of legislation that affected public education, expanded healthcare access, and set in place environmental protections. In 2010, Speaker of the Assembly John Pérez appointed Ma to the leadership position of Speaker pro Tempore, a position which she held for her final 2 years as the California Assembly. As presiding officer and member of the leadership team, Ma guided assembly members through the daily business of the house, responds to parliamentary inquiries, issues rulings on points of order when necessary, and is responsible for guiding legislative priorities. Ma presided over a record-breaking 18-hour session to pass California's budget.

As an assemblywoman, Ma continued her work around toxic children's toys, authoring legislation banning toxic chemicals in products for babies and small children in assembly bill 1108. The bill came to be known as the "Rubber Duck Bill", so named because phthalates are often used in the manufacture of soft plastic toys and baby teethers. Arnold Schwarzenegger, then governor of California, signed the bill into law in October 2007; it took effect in January 2009. Ma's legislation was later incorporated into Senator Dianne Feinstein's [83] federal Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 signed by President George W. Bush on August 15, 2008. She also worked on the creation of statewide high-speed rail, granting equal rights to men and women to change their last names when they are married or become domestic partners, and was a co-author of SB 840, a bill that would create a single payer universal health care system throughout California.

Committee membership

Standing committees:

  • Committee on Accountability and Administrative Review
  • Committee on Agriculture
  • Committee on Appropriations
  • Committee on Arts, Entertainment, Sports, Tourism, and Internet Media
  • Committee on Business and Professions
  • Committee on Governmental Organization
  • Committee on Health
  • Committee on Higher Education
  • Committee on Housing and Community Development
  • Committee on Labor and Employment
  • Committee on Public Employees, Retirement and Social Security
  • Committee on Public Safety
  • Committee on Revenue and Taxation
  • Committee on Utilities and Commerce

Select committees:

  • Chair, Select Committee on Domestic Violence
  • Select Committee on Alcohol And Drug Abuse
  • Select Committee on Foster Care
  • Select Committee on Preservation of California's Entertainment Industry
  • Select Committee on Rail Transportation
  • Select Committee on Regional Approaches To Addressing The State's Water Crisis
  • Select Committee on Safety And Protection Of At-Risk Communities In California

Joint committees:

  • Joint Committee on Fairs, Allocation, and Classification
  • Joint Committee for the Protection of Lake Tahoe

California Board of Equalization

On November 4, 2014, Ma won election to Board of Equalization district 2. She received 1,448,657 votes to win the election by 68.5% of the vote.[84] District 2 covers nearly 10 million people along California's coastline from Oregon to Santa Barbara.

On, February 24, 2016, at the Board of Equalization (BOE) meeting in Culver City, the Board selected Ma as its chair.[85] As chair, Ma also sits on the California Franchise Tax Board.[86]

The California's Board of Equalization was created by voter initiative in 1879 to "equalize" property values/taxes. The board has broad regulatory and adjudicatory powers as a state tax board. The five-member Board meets monthly and is the only elected tax board in the country. The BOE administers more than 30 tax and fee programs. During fiscal year 2014–15, the BOE generated $60.5 billion of revenue. The BOE's monthly meetings offer taxpayers and other interested parties opportunities to participate in the formulation of rules and regulations adopted by the Board.[87]


Personal life

She is married to Jason Hodge, a firefighter of Native American descent[88] and an Oxnard Port Commissioner with the Port of Hueneme in Ventura County.[89]

Political positions

Business taxes

A top priority for Ma on the Board of Equalization has been to get everyone to pay “their fair share of taxes”, particularly “the $8 billion in unpaid taxes in the underground economy.”[90] This has included efforts to get Amazon to collect sales tax on transactions from third-party sellers as a way of helping local brick-and-mortar retailers to compete[91] – estimated at between $431 million and $1.8 billion in new revenue for California every year.[58] In her first year, Ma also advocated for e-cigarettes to be taxed like tobacco products, as a way to deter vaping and smoking, and to pay for health-costs caused by tobacco use.[92] Two years later in 2017, voters passed Prop. 56 with a nearly 2/3 majority, collecting $1.7 billion in new tobacco taxes which was spent on anti-smoking programs and funding Medi-Cal payments for the poor.[93] Ma also identified the cannabis industry as “the largest shadow economy in California”[94] with “hundreds of millions of dollars that disappear into an underground cannabis economy”.[95] Her tireless efforts to regulate the industry, develop systems to “track and trace” all marijuana in California,[96] and to develop legal banking mechanisms[97] for marijuana businesses[98] have earned her the nickname of “chief marijuana tax collector”.[99]

Tax relief for citizens and small business

After 2015's Valley Fire in Lake County left four dead and nearly 2,000 buildings destroyed, Ma proposed a new law[100] (enacted the following year)[101] that granted some tax relief to businesses that suffer losses from a natural disaster like the Valley Fire.[102] Ma has also actively supported California's Earned Income Tax Credit to give cash back to low-income individuals,[103] and promoted expansion of the program to minimum wage earners[104] and independent contractors.[105]

Clean government reforms

Within months of joining the Board of Equalization, Ma became “very, very frustrated” with the agency's fiscal conditions and mishandling of state tax accounts.[106] She called for the formation of an Auditing and Oversight Committee,[107] and when she became Chairperson in 2016, initiated three external audits of the agency.[108] The audits exposed a culture of mismanagement, nepotism and political use of state resources.[109] Ma co-sponsored legislation to toughen campaign reporting requirements for BOE members.[110] She then led the effort to ask the Governor to appoint a public trustee to take over the agency,[111] and called on CA Attorney General Xavier Becerra to assign independent legal counsel for the agency.[112] Ma laid out a list of reforms[113] which was incorporated into the “Taxpayer Transparency and Fairness Act of 2017”,[114] the biggest restructuring of the Board of Equalization in its 138-year history.[115] The law was signed by Governor Jerry Brown in June 2017 and supported by Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon, Senate President Kevin de León, and former BOE member Controller Betty Yee.[116]

Women and diversity

Ma continued her lifelong commitment to promoting women[117] and diversity[118] in public office. In 2016, she received Emerge California’s Woman of the Year Award[119] and was a speaker at the Ascend Conference, the largest non-profit Pan-Asian business conference in America.[120] Among her many other activities, Ma also celebrated Women's Equality Day at the Kelley House in Mendocino[121] and spoke to students at the Future Chinese Leaders of America in Los Angeles.[122]

On February 23, 2007, Ma introduced a bill which would have required commercial exhibitors of plastinated corpses to obtain a county permit, which would be dependent on proof of consent from the decedent or next of kin.[123] It passed the Senate on August 15, 2008 and was vetoed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger on September 26, citing a budget delay that caused him to only sign bills "that are the highest priority for California. This bill does not meet that standard and I cannot sign it at this time."[124]

Banning toxic chemicals

Fiona Ma has passed legislation banning toxic chemicals in plastics and children's toys. As a Supervisor in San Francisco, she authored and passed Ordinance Number 060107 to "prohibit the manufacture, sale, or distribution in commerce of any toy or child-care article…if it contains bisphenol-A or other specified chemicals." This was the first ordinance of its time. The goal of the ordinance was to place pressure on the California State Legislature and national government to follow suit. As a California State Legislator, she continued her work, passing A.B. 1108, which also banned toxic chemicals from children's toys. Her language was later used by Senator Dianne Feinstein in the federal Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008, signed into law in 2008.[80]

Hepatitis B awareness and prevention

At the age of 22, Fiona Ma learned that she had Hepatitis B (HBV), a virus that causes 80 percent of all liver cancer if left untreated and often shows no symptoms until it is almost too late. Almost 1.4 million Americans are infected with HBV, and more than half are Asian Pacific Islander Americans. An estimated one in ten are chronically infected with the virus. As a result of its high Asian population, San Francisco has one of the highest rates of liver cancer in the nation, and HBV-related liver cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among API men in California.

Fiona Ma assumed a leading role in the fight against Hepatitis B, serving as a spokesperson for San Francisco Hep B Free - the largest and most intensive healthcare campaign for APIs in the United States. It is widely considered a model for the nation in eliminating HBV in a regional area.

In 2008, Fiona Ma introduced Assembly Bill 158, which would have required the Department of Health Care Services to apply for a federal waiver to expand Medi-Cal eligibility for individuals with chronic Hepatitis B. She also introduced a resolution declaring May 2009 as Hepatitis B Awareness Month in California.

High-speed rail

Ma is a longtime advocate of transportation solutions, the Joint author of Proposition 1-A and the convener of the High Speed Rail Caucus. Ma was one of the leading advocates of high-speed trains in California and one of its main campaigners traveling statewide promoting its environmental benefits and job creating effects . The proposition ultimately was approved by the voters in November 2008 maintaining critical funding after the Governor Schwarzenegger had proposed a major defunding of high-speed rail.

Incarcerated survivors of domestic violence

As the chair of the Domestic Violence Select Committee, Assemblywoman Fiona Ma has worked diligently to shed light on the challenges that incarcerated victims of domestic violence experience while in the judicial system. A California prison study found that 93% of the women who had killed their significant others had been battered; 67% of these women attempted to protect themselves or their children. She has attended parole hearings to ensure survivors who have spent decades behind bars receive suitability; and also spearheaded the first legislation of its kind in the entire country, when Governor Brown signed "The Sin by Silence Bills", inspired by the documentary Sin by Silence, into law on September 30, 2012 that ensures the path to freedom for over 7,000 domestic violence survivors currently serving time in California prisons. AB 593 allows victims of domestic violence whose expert testimony was limited at their trial court proceedings to re-file for a writ of habeas corpus to allow this expert testimony to weigh in on their defense and it will also give victims more time to receive legal representation by deleting the sunset date currently in statute. AB 1593 gives victims who have suffered Intimate Partner Battering (IPB) a chance to present their evidence in an effective way during the parole process by giving great weight to any information or evidence that proves the prisoner experienced IPB and its effects at the time the crime was committed. This bill will also require that the information delivered to the Legislature relating to IPB, will be in specific and detailed reports.[80]

Non-profit and community involvement

Ma serves on the Board of Directors, and was a past Treasurer, for Curry Without Worry, a non-profit based in San Francisco. Since 2006, this organization has fed over 45,000 people.[8] She is also currently on the Board of Directors of CA Women Lead and Asian Inc. She is the Honorary Chair and spokesperson of the San Francisco Hep B Free Campaign; Honorary California Chair of the New Leaders Council, Board Advisory Committee for the James L. Brady Riding Program for Children with Disabilities, Board Advisory Committee for Family Connections, President of Board of Asian American Donor Program, and Board Advisory Committee of the SF Ethnic Dance Festival.

State and national outreach

Assemblymember Ma has been active in promoting trade and fostering relationships between California and the Nation. As an Executive Board Member of the National Conference of State Legislators, she worked to keep California competitive with other states. She also served as the Western Region Director of Women in Government, the State Legislative Leaders Council, and was an Executive Board Member of the California Democratic Party.

International outreach

Since 1998, Ma has been on the forefront in promoting trade and commerce between California and Asia, leading legislative delegations to China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. She has been a frequent speaker in the region promoting US interests in high-speed rail, agriculture, entertainment and education. She has also taken the lead to welcome foreign dignitaries visiting California in her elected capacities.

She has participated in various California trade delegations and has met with legislative leaders and decision-makers in India, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, France, Israel, Ireland and Iceland

Legislative Session 2011–12

In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Assemblywoman Ma had 25 bills chaptered into law, 4 Assembly Concurrent Resolutions and 1 Assembly Joint Resolution signed by Governor Brown. A few are as follows:

AB 74 Public event action plans and cooperative management In response to substance abuse-related deaths, injuries and arrests involving electronic-music shows at San Francisco's Cow Palace and the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The Assembly voted 75-0 to support AB 74. The bill establishes safety guidelines for electronic-music concerts when they are held on publicly owned properties such as the Cow Palace, which is located in Ma's 12th Assembly District. "California needs to better monitor and control events occurring on state properties," Ma said in a news release. "AB 74 is intended to prevent the loss of life and make safety a top priority at events on state property." The law requires the state agency intending to host any rave expected to draw 10,000 people or more to assess potential problems, the need for law enforcement and medical personnel, and other related issues. If the agency concludes there's a strong possibility for loss of life or harm to participants, the show's promoter would be required to prepare a plan to provide an adequate law-enforcement presence, control drug use and potentially prohibit minors.[125]

AB 183 (2011) Alcoholic beverage licenses: self-service checkout This bill prohibits off-sale licensees from selling alcoholic beverages using a customer-operated checkout stand located on the licensee's physical premises. This bill makes findings and declarations regarding the effects of allowing alcoholic beverages to be sold using self-service checkouts.

AB 199 (2011) Role of Filipinos in World War II This bill encourages social science instruction in grades 7–12 to include the role of Filipinos in World War II.

AB 300 (2011) Safe Body Art Act This bill enacts the Safe Body Art Act providing minimum statewide standards for the regulation of individuals in the business of tattooing, body piercing, and the application of permanent cosmetics. The provisions will take effect on July 1, 2012.

AB 593 (2012) Domestic violence: battering: recall and resentencing This bill expands the provisions allowing a habeas corpus petition in cases where intimate partner battering was not introduced into evidence to include cases where the evidence was not competent or substantial and where such evidence may have changed the sentence not just the conviction.

AB 812 (2012) Recycled asphalt This bill authorizes the Department of Transportation to establish specifications for the use of up to 40% reclaimed asphalt pavement for hot asphalt mixes on or before January 1, 2014.

AB 845 (2012) Origin of Waste This bill mandates that a county cannot discriminate against waste being brought to their landfills based on county of origin where it is generated, to ensure recycling needs are met, and effective and environmentally sound facilities continue to be utilized.

AB 907 (2012) Processors of farm products It authorizes the Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) to impose sanctions three times the amount of unpaid or underpaid license fees and requires any bond or irrevocable guarantee, placed in lieu of proof of financial responsibility, to include both past and future debts owed as a requirement of obtaining a processor's license.

AB 1593 (2012) Parole: intimate partner battering This bill requires the Board of Parole Hearings (BPH), when reviewing a prisoner's suitability for parole, to give great weight to any information or evidence that, at the time of the commission of the crime, the prisoner had experienced intimate partner battering and provide that they cannot use the fact that the prisoner brought in the evidence to find that a prisoner lacks insight to his or her crime.

AB 2564 (2012) Environmental quality: pipelines: project applicants This bill expands the application of an existing California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) exemption for pipeline projects less than one mile in length.

ACR 42 (2011) Eat Local, Buy California Grown Day This resolution declares that Sundays are "Eat Local, Buy California Grown Day," and encourages families, restaurants, and grocers to buy California-grown foods because supporting California-grown food products will result in higher food quality, improved food safety, and higher environmental and animal welfare standards, in addition to significant economic benefits.

Legislative Session 2009–10

In this legislative session, 19 of the − Assemblywoman's bills were signed into law and 5 Assembly Concurrent Resolutions were chaptered. A few of are as follows:

AB 144 (2009) Vehicles: − distinguishing placards and license plates This bill provides cities and counties with greater authority to cite disabled parking offenses with civil parking citations, sets minimum penalty amounts for these civil offenses, and extends an existing 10 percent special penalty assessment to additional criminal and civil citations.

AB 258 (2009) Domestic violence: restraining or protective order: aggressor This bill amends Penal Code Section 836, concerning arrests in situations where mutual protective orders have been issued, to change the phrase "primary aggressor" to "dominant aggressor."

AB 1050 (2010) Child custody: preferences of child This bill, among other things, requires the family court to permit a child who is 14 years of age or older to address the court regarding custody or visitation unless the court determines that doing so is not in the child's best interest, in which case the court will be required to make that finding on the record.

ACR 64 (2009) Heptatitis B This resolution declares May 2009, to be Hepatitis B Awareness Month in California, recognizes May 19, 2009, as World Hepatitis Awareness Day, and calls on all interested parties to come together to raise awareness and educate the public on hepatitis B and to make recommendations on ways to implement best practices in hepatitis B prevention and treatment. At the age of 22, Ma learned she had hepatitis B (HBV), a virus that causes 80% of all liver cancer if left untreated and one that shows no symptoms until it's almost too late. Approximately 1.4 million Americans are infected with HBV, and more than half of them are Asian/Pacific Islander (API) Americans. It is estimated that 1 in 10 APIs are chronically infected with HBV. Like most APIs, Ma contracted HBV from her mother at birth via perinatal exposure. San Francisco has the highest rate of liver cancer in the nation because of its high API population, and HBV-related liver cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among API men living in California. Ma works to remove the stigma of the disease in the Asian − community by actively speaking out about the importance of testing and vaccination.[126] In 2008, Ma introduced Assembly Bill 158 which requires the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) to apply for a federal waiver to expand Medi-Cal eligibility for individuals with chronic hepatitis B. AB 158 did not make it through the legislative process due to costs associated with the bill. ill. The resolution supports collaborating with all interested parties to raise public awareness about HBV. It also supports
the development of a comprehensive, statewide HBV prevention and treatment plan. Ma serves as honorary chairperson for San Francisco Hep B Free - the largest, most intensive health care campaign for APIs in the U.S. and one that is looked upon as a model for the nation in eliminating HBV. [127] In May 2010, San Francisco Hep B Free launched its controversial " 300/http://www.sfhepbfree.org/preview201 0 Which One Deserves to Die" ad campaign which received national coverage that featured Ma in the NY Times [128] and on CBS, ABC, PBS, NPR, Sirius Radio, and more.

ACR 70 (2009) Asian and Pacific Islander American Heritage Month This resolution commends Asian and Pacific Islander Americans for their notable accomplishments and outstanding service to the state; and, recognizes the month of May 2009 as Asian and Pacific Islander American Heritage Month.

Legislative Session 2007–08

The Assemblywoman had 16 of her bills signed, 3 Assembly Concurrent Resolution, and 1 Assembly Joint Resolution chaptered. A few of Assemblywoman Ma's bills are as follows:

AB 101 (2007) Vehicles: parking enforcement: video image evidence This bill allows San Francisco to install automated forward facing parking control devices on city-owned public transit for the purpose of taking video images of parking violations occurring in transit-only traffic lanes.

AB 1108 (2007) Children's products: phthalates A bill that prohibited the manufacture, sale, and distribution of toys and child care products intended for use by children under the age of three that contain toxic chemicals known as phthalates. These substances are used in soft plastic toys and other baby products such as bath books, rubber ducks, and baby teethers. Scientific research shows that these chemicals can have a negative effect on human health and may increase the risk of premature birth, early onset of puberty, lower sperm count, increased reproductive defects, and even cancer. These chemicals are already banned in 14 countries and the European Union, which has made the United States a toxic toy dumping ground. Four of the six phthalates banned in the bill have already been placed on California's Proposition 65 list as reproductive toxins.

AB 1062 (2008) School facilities: uniform standards: solar design plans Requires the Department of General Services' (DGS) Division of State Architect (DSA), on or before January 1, 2010, to develop uniform criteria for precheck approval process for solar design plans, including structural plans and calculations, for school facility projects' compliance with existing law and regulations

AB 1771 (2008) Domestic violence: restraining orders This bill expressly authorizes a court in a domestic violence case to consider the underlying nature of the offense charged, and specified related information required under current law for these cases, in determining whether good cause exists to issue a protective order, as specified.

AB 3034 (2008) Safe, Reliable High-Speed Passenger Train Bond Act for the 21st Century At the start of her first term, Assemblywoman Ma convened the bi-cameral and bi-partisan high-speed rail caucus. The caucus worked to protect and restore budget funding for the High Speed Rail Authority and fought to keep the High Speed Rail bond on the November 2008 ballot. Assemblywoman Ma joint-authored AB 3034, the Safe Reliable, High-Speed Train Bond Act for the 21st Century—Prop 1-A on the November 2008 ballot. Assemblywoman Ma was a leader in the campaign to pass Prop 1-A, which was approved with 53% of the vote. She continues to work on the effort to capture federal funding the High Speed Rail Authority.

ACR 6 (2007) Teenage dating violence This resolution recognizes February 5 to 9, 2007, as Teenage Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Week.

ACR 28 (2007) National Day of Human Trafficking Awareness This resolution recognizes "National Day of Human Trafficking Awareness" on January 11 of each year in order to encourage greater awareness of human trafficking and all other forms of modern-day slavery.

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  76. ^ 华裔女性马世云就职加州众议院执行议长 [Chinese American Fiona Ma becomes the Speaker pro Tempore California State Assembly]. DuoWei News (in Simplified Chinese). March 2010. Archived from the original on 2011-07-10.
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  78. ^ "Treasurer Fiona Ma Biography" (PDF). California Treasurer's Office. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
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  80. ^ a b c Slow Death by Rubber Duck: How the Toxic Chemistry of Everyday Life Affects Our Health; Rick Smith, Bruce Lourie Random House Digital, Inc,2010
  81. ^ Gordon, Rachel (2006-06-04). "$3 million Pumped into Assembly Race: But on final weekend of campaigns, both Ma and Reilly are relying on shoe leather". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2007-03-19.
  82. ^ "Official Election Results". City and County of San Francisco Department of Elections. 2006-12-05. Archived from the original on 2006-11-30. Retrieved 2006-03-19.
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  86. ^ https://www.ftb.ca.gov/aboutFTB/boardMembers.shtml?WT.mc_id=AboutUs_BoardBiographies
  87. ^ http://www.boe.ca.gov
  88. ^ Zinko, Carolyne (2011-11-21). "It only takes a spark for Fiona Ma, Jason Hodge". The San Francisco Chronicle.
  89. ^ "Port of Hueneme closes out 2019 with record 1.65 million cargo tons and 2,201 new jobs". American Journal of Transportation. December 13, 2019. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
  90. ^ "Fiona Ma, Candidate for State Board of Equalization D2". smartvoter.org. Smart Voter. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  91. ^ Ashton, Adam; Chen, Caitlin (July 2, 2018). "Online sales tax ruling could bring 'hundreds of millions of dollars' to California". The Sacramento Bee. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  92. ^ "Idea Of Taxing E-Cigarettes Like Tobacco Gets Key Support". KCBS News. March 31, 2015. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  93. ^ Mason, Melanie; Myers, John (June 13, 2017). "With a deadline looming, there's a deal between Gov. Jerry Brown and lawmakers on a new state budget". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  94. ^ Chiang, Treasurer (December 20, 2016). "Cannabis Banking Tales of Risks Take Center Stage at Capitol Meeting of Industries and Public Agencies". Yubanet.com. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  95. ^ Ma, Fiona (August 4, 2015). "Banking the Unbanked: A Win-Win Proposition". Huffington Post. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  96. ^ Young, Samantha (February 19, 2016). "California Considers Marijuana 'Track and Trace' System for Cannabis Industry". Government Technology. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  97. ^ Ma, Fiona; Hertzberg, Bob (June 16, 2018). "Bank cannabis for a safer, more responsible Los Angeles". Los Angeles Daily News. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  98. ^ Moore, Chris (June 1, 2018). "California Senate Approves Bill to Create Banks for the Cannabis Industry". Merry Jane. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  99. ^ Downs, David (November 4, 2016). "California regulators will be swamped by $1 billion in pot taxes". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  100. ^ News Reports, Lake County (September 22, 2015). "Board of Equalization Member Fiona Ma tours wildfire damage in Lake County". Lake County News. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  101. ^ News Reports, Lake County (September 10, 2016). "Dodd's tax relief bill for disaster victims signed into law". Lake County News. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  102. ^ "Tax relief available for wildfire survivors". The Brentwood Press. October 24, 2017. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  103. ^ Ma, Fiona (April 18, 2016). "Earn It, Keep It, Save It". Huffington Post. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  104. ^ Ma, Fiona (January 27, 2017). "California Must Do More to Help Working Families". Huffington Post. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  105. ^ Ma, Fiona (June 3, 2016). "Reward work — offer tax credit to '1099 workers'". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  106. ^ "California SBOE Audit Leads to Senior Staff Changes". Bloomberg BNA. November 23, 2015. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  107. ^ Vigna, John. "Statement from Fiona Ma on Controller's Audit of State Board of Equalization Internal Accounting and Administrative Controls". boe.ca.gov. California Board of Equalization. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  108. ^ "California Legislature Passes Sweeping BOE Tax Reform". Office of Fiona Ma. June 16, 2017. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  109. ^ Ashton, Adam (March 31, 2017). "Here's the audit shaking up the Board of Equalization". The Sacramento Bee. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  110. ^ New Staff, The Democrat (February 10, 2016). "New legislation to change state campaign finance and reporting". Daily Democrat. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  111. ^ Ma, Fiona. "Request for Public Trustee to Oversee the California Board of Equalization" (PDF). boe.ca.gov. California Board of Equalization. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
  112. ^ Ashton, Adam (April 28, 2017). "Troubled tax board needs appointed chief counsel, member says". The Sacramento Bee. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
  113. ^ Ma, Fiona. "Necessary Reforms at SBOE to Restore Public Trust" (PDF). boe.ca.gov. California Board of Equalization. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
  114. ^ Committee on Budget & Fiscal Review. "SB-86 The Taxpayer Transparency and Fairness Act of 2017". legislature.ca.gov. California Legislative Information. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
  115. ^ McGreevy, Patrick (June 27, 2017). "In massive shakeup, Gov. Jerry Brown breaks up California's scandal-plagued tax collection agency". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  116. ^ Ashton, Adam (June 15, 2017). "It took almost 90 years, but lawmakers voted to gut California's tax board". The Sacramento Bee. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  117. ^ "Celebrating 100 Years of Women Elected to Serve in the California State Legislature". Office of Fiona Ma. June 19, 2018. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  118. ^ Ma, Fiona (July 1, 2017). "Happy Birthday, America!". Huffington Post. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  119. ^ "BOARD OF EQUALIZATION CHAIR FIONA MA TO RECEIVE 2016 WOMAN OF THE YEAR AWARD AT SF ANNUAL RECEPTION". emergeca.ngpvanhost.com. Emerge California. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  120. ^ "2016 National Convention & Career Fair Speakers". ascendleadership.org. Ascend, Pan-Asian Leaders. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  121. ^ "Women's Equality Day celebration at Kelley House". The Ukiah Daily Journal. August 12, 2015. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  122. ^ Administrator (July 31, 2017). "Fiona Ma meeting with Southern California Chinese American Youth". The Los Angeles Post. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  123. ^ "California Assembly approves legislation to ensure prior consent", by Marc Lifisher, Los Angeles Times.
  124. ^ Notice of veto, from Arnold Schwazenegger
  125. ^ mateo-county/ci_18151243?nclick_check=1 "Ma's bill targeting raves passes Assembly - San Jose Mercury News". Mercurynews.com. Retrieved 2012-08-30. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
  126. ^ Mike Aldax (May 13, 2010). "Fighting to eliminate hepatitis". The San Francisco Examiner. Archived from the original on 2010-05-24. Retrieved 2010-05-23.
  127. ^ "City-wide Campaign Becomes National Hep B Model - The Office of Minority Health - OMH". Minorityhealth.hhs.gov −. Retrieved 2012-08-30. {{cite web}}: |archive-url= is malformed: timestamp (help); Missing pipe in: |archive-url= (help); Unknown parameter |archive- date= ignored (help)CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  128. ^ McKinley, Jesse (2010- 05-02). s/03hepatitis.html "In Ads, Plea for Asians to Get Tests for Hepatitis". The New York Times. {{cite news}}: Check |url= value (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Fiona Ma.
California Assembly
Preceded by Speaker pro tempore of the California Assembly
2010–2012 		Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Treasurer of California
2019–present 		Incumbent
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