Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner

Steve Poizner was elected California Insurance Commissioner on November 7, 2006 and took the Oath of Office on January 8, 2007. Poizner has been described as "independent" (Modesto Bee), "a man of integrity" (LA Times), someone with "an impressive command of the issues" (SD Union Tribune) and having a "reformist bent" (Sacramento Bee).

A highly-successful businessman/entrepreneur, Poizner founded several technology companies. His last company, SnapTrack, pioneered life-saving technology that put GPS receivers into cell phones. This technology is now the industry standard and can be found in more than 700 million cell phones around the world. Poizner also founded and served as chief executive officer of Strategic Mapping Inc., a company that assisted police departments, utilities, transportation companies, banks and retailers with selecting new locations and plotting distribution logistics.

Poizner has long been active in public service and civic affairs. From 2001-02, he served in the White House as the Director of Critical Infrastructure Protection in the National Security Council. Starting one week before the September 11, 2001 attacks, Poizner was responsible for issues such as emergency communications planning for the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City and protecting internet/banking system/power grids from cyber attacks. In 2006 he was elected as a lifetime member of the Council on Foreign Relations (nominated by former Secretary of State George Shultz).

Poizner is also a strong advocate for education reform. He was a co-founder of the California Charter Schools Association, the state's leading charter school organization. Since his involvement began, the number of charter schools in California has doubled. He also co-founded EdVoice, a statewide organization that advocates education reform and promotes issues such as charter schools, accountability and local control. Poizner has also served on the boards of several organizations committed to assisting disadvantaged children in K-12 public schools. In addition to his reform efforts, Poizner also spent a year "in the trenches" as a volunteer teacher at Mount Pleasant High School in East San Jose where he taught 12th grade government.

As Insurance Commissioner, Poizner oversees the California Department of Insurance (CDI), the largest consumer protection agency in the state. CDI has more than 1,200 positions, a $200 million budget and regulates almost one-tenth of the California economy.

Poizner was raised in Houston, Texas. He did his undergraduate work at the University of Texas where, based on academics and extracurricular leadership, he was named the Top Male Student in a student body of 40,000. Poizner was also recognized as one of the top 10 engineering students in the nation. He moved to California in 1978 to attend Stanford University, where he earned a Master's Degree with Honors in Business Administration. In addition to his academic degrees, Poizner also earned a black belt in Shotokan karate, a contact-style martial art.

Commissioner Poizner and his wife, Carol, live in Los Gatos where they are raising their daughter, Rebecca.

Above taken from the bio on his official State website (as of 6/28/2010)