Adam Gray

Born in the center of the San Joaquin Valley and raised in Merced County, Gray began working as a teenager at Merced Dairy Supply, the business his grandfather founded. Working afternoons and weekends, he came in daily contact with farmers from throughout the region. He graduated from Golden Valley High School and then attended Merced College before earning his bachelor's degree in political science from University of California at Santa Barbara.[1][2]

After graduation from UCSB, Gray returned to Merced to work in the district office of Assemblymember Dennis Cardoza. A family friend, Cardoza later became a U.S. Congressman. At the time, farmers were plagued with soaring energy prices, rolling blackouts, low rainfall and low-cost food imports flooding the market. Gray worked on legislation to get rid of the so-called “Tractor Tax,” exempting farm equipment and the fuel to power them and farming machinery from state sales taxes. This exemption encouraged farmers to trade in aging farm equipment for safer, more efficient and cleaner-running tractors, trucks and other vital machines.

Gray spent 15 years as a staff member for elected leaders including Cardoza, Herb Wesson, Fabian Nunez and Jerome Horton. In this time, Gray helped develop legislation to provide tax incentives to small businesses, protect groundwater from the dangers of fracking and protect family farms from scrap-metal theft. Gray worked on legislation to provide tax credits to first-time homebuyers and protect homeowners against fraudulent loan modification scams in the aftermath of the collapse of the home-buying bubble, which devastated property values in his district.[3]

Gray was also a member of the staff of state Sen. Ron Calderon, D-Montebello.[4] In July 2013, Gray testified in the federal investigation involving the corruption charges against Calderon.

Gray was elected to the California State Assembly in November 2012, receiving 58.2% of the vote.[5] In the 2014 primary election, Gray received 95.3% of the vote and was reelected in 2016 with 66.8% of the vote and again in 2018 with 71.3% of the vote.[6]

He chairs the Governmental Operations Committee and sits on the Agriculture Committee, the Revenue and Taxation Committee and the Select Committee on Health Care Access in Rural Communities. Gray is also a member of the Joint Legislative Committee on Emergency Management, which has played a leadership role in the response to the Coronavirus outbreak.

In October 2013, when a fire destroyed the power source for a mobile home park in the tiny community of Santa Nella, Gray organized efforts to restore power to 30 homes by bringing together local electrical workers and donated parts.[7][8]

In June 2014, Gray helped organized a bipartisan group, including Republican Senator Anthony Cannella and Merced Superintendent of Public Schools Steve Gomes, to ensure state funding could be found to build a new special-education school in Merced County. Gray was the honored special guest when the project broke ground on August 15, 2014.[9][10]

In July 2014, Gray helped bring attention to Merced and Stanislaus counties as a potential site for Tesla Motors' multibillion-dollar “Giga-Factory,” focusing on two languishing former military bases in Atwater and Patterson, California.[11][12]

In September 2014, Gray was named the California Rifle and Pistol Association (CRPA) - Outstanding Legislator of the Year. CRPA Executive Director John Fields said, “Assemblymember Gray has gone above and beyond to protect gun owners and hunters," and commended his "continued defense of the Second Amendment.”[13] [14]

In October 2014, small businesses throughout the northern San Joaquin Valley were plagued by predatory lawsuits citing inconsequential infractions of the Americans with Disabilities Act. These lawsuits were brought by "high-frequency litigants," including a convicted child pornographer from Arizona; several small businesses were forced to close their doors rather than pay demands six-figure settlements. Working with representatives of the disabled community, small-business owners and other elected leaders, Gray drafted legislation in 2015 to allow business owners an opportunity to correct problems before requiring monetary settlements paid directly plaintiffs. [15][16]

As chair of the Joint Legislative Audit Committee, Gray oversaw the approval of numerous audits on issues ranging from the University of California's “Rape Culture”[17] and inappropriate fiscal management at the California Department of Parks and Recreation,[18] to false and abusive claims under the Medi-Cal Drug Rehabilitation Program[19] and negligent misconduct at Child Protective Services agencies.[20]

After Merced County suffered one of the most deadly outbreaks of gang violence in the state of California from 2012 through 2015, Gray worked with senators Canella and Cathleen Galgiani to create the Violence Interruption/Prevention Emergency Response (VIPER) program. It dedicated $4.5 million from the 2016-17 state budget to fund violence prevention programs, improve student safety at UC Merced and provide additional resources for law enforcement intelligence gathering and collaboration. Homicides fell by nearly half in two years.

In 2018, Gray spearheaded the largest public protest at the Capitol that year in opposition to doubling or tripling unimpaired flow requirements on the Tuolumne, Merced and Stanislaus rivers. A group of some 1,500 people included business owners, factory workers, farmers, city council members, county supervisors, U.S. Representatives, school superintendents, FFA members and a high school marching band.

Gray helped secure $2 million for the renovation of Camp Taylor, an all-volunteer facility on the banks of the San Joaquin River where children suffering from congenital heart defects can enjoy supervised activities such as canoeing, horseback riding, rope courses, archery and treasure hunts.

Gray has been a leading proponent of establishing pre-medical courses at UC Merced since the campus opened. Gray helped secure $15 million per year in ongoing funding to create the San Joaquin Valley Coalition for Medical Education and expand courses at both the UC Merced and Fresno State campuses and the UC San Francisco satellite campus in Fresno.

AB 793 -- Gray and Sen. Anthony Cannella jointly introduced legislation to ensure Merced Irrigation District customers did not experience electricity rate increases resulting from new hydro-electric power regulations. The legislation was signed into law which prohibits new regulations from increasing the prices paid by MID energy customers from New Exchequer Dam.

ACR 154 -- Gray introduced legislation to recognize the efforts of Modesto City Schools' course in world geography and religions. According to The Modesto Bee, "the district is believed to be the only public school district in the nation to require a class on world religions." This Assembly Concurrent Resolution applauds the course for its efforts to reduce bullying of Sikh and Muslim children, and recommends it be considered by school districts statewide."

AB 1545 -- Gray introduced legislation to provide otherwise law-abiding gun owners with a path to register guns that were obtained or transferred without oversight by a licensed dealer., the Gun Owner Protection Act, allows gun owners to voluntarily declare their firearm for late registration, provided they are not on the DOJ's prohibited persons list or otherwise barred from owning firearms.

AB 1004 and AB 2121 -- Gray crafted a series of bill in 2013 and 2014 to expedite the process of obtaining an arrest warrant for a criminal not in custody and ensure paroled sex offenders do not circumvent the GPS monitor used to track their whereabouts.

Addressing the critical shortage of medical professionals in the Central Valley, Gray has pushed numerous legislative and administrative initiatives to provide better care for some of California’s poorest residents. His legislation allowed primary clinics located near homeless shelters and schools to increase their hours from 20 to 40 per week; he successfully pushed for changes in Medi-Cal reimbursement rates to match those of Medicare, meaning more doctors can accept Medi-Cal patients; he fought to create the PRIME program that established a clinical track for medical students who commit to remain in the Valley after graduation.

Gray lives in Merced. He was married to Cadee Condit Gray.

• Official website
• Campaign website