The city or town that a legislator is from definitely has an impact on the center of power within a legislative district. It can also give insight into what the legislator’s priorities are.
So, what’s the best way to identify a legislator’s hometown? Well, the Senate and Assembly Final Histories was a fantastic resource for nearly a century.
Starting in 1897, the Senate Final Histories included legislator home addresses (and frequently staff addresses as well). However, by the early 1970s, the Senators had started using PO boxes and district office addresses instead of home. The official Senate switch to using district office mailing address came in about 1974 and has continued to the present.
It is worth noting however, that the Senate has always allowed Senators to identify on the Senate Floor seating chart the hometown or region that they represent.
Over in the State Assembly, the Final Histories included legislator home addresses 1899-1972 (calling it either the home address or just mailing address). Legislators sometimes listed business addresses starting in the 1960s (law offices, etc.) and starting in 1974 the State Assembly began providing the District Office mailing address, which has continued to this day.
Because legislators often pick a district office location near their home (to make access easier) this is far from 100%. One example of an exception was Patty Berg, who represented the north coast during from 2002 to 2008. Berg lived in Humboldt County but maintained her District Office more than 200 miles away in Santa Rosa (a nearly four-hour drive from her home).
