Since first being elected to the State Assembly in 2016, Laura Friedman has garnered a reputation as a problem-solver and forward-thinking legislator who is not afraid to tackle tough issues. She represents the 44th District — which includes Toluca Lake, Studio City, Burbank, Glendale and other large portions of L.A. — but her policy priorities are far-reaching, addressing pressing issues such as affordable health care and housing, environmental sustainability, transportation, women’s reproductive rights and more.
Her goal is to effect lasting change that not only improves the quality of life in the communities she serves today, but also makes a positive impact for future generations — an approach she credits to her 10-year-old daughter.
“Everything I do, I see through the lens of the world she’s growing up into,” Friedman explains. “All the work that I do is really all about things like housing affordability, climate change, things that will affect her life very directly, and that’s my motivation really. I’m one of those people who can’t sleep at night unless I’m doing something to solve a problem. It’s the way I’m able to protect my daughter and make our community better.”
After 14 years of representing the district, Friedman is saying farewell, for now. She hopes to replace Representative Adam Schiff in Congress and bring her fresh perspectives and fearless leadership to Washington, D.C.
From Film to Public Service
Friedman was thrust into the world of politics while growing up in South Florida. She spent her childhood canvassing and marching in rallies for the Equal Rights Amendment and abortion rights alongside her mother, an activist and the founder of the first chapter of the National Organization for Women in Broward County. The experience, while eye-opening, made Friedman decide that she “would never, ever want to be involved in politics,” so she opted to study film in college instead of following her mother’s wish for her to attend law school, a decision that Friedman says “completely broke her heart.”
After graduating from the University of Rochester, New York, Friedman began working in the city as a film and television executive and producer. In 1992, she moved to Los Angeles for a job at Paramount Pictures. While she loved her career in the industry, she found herself leaning into civic engagement. Her passion for historic preservation and architecture led her to volunteer for the L.A. Conservancy, and when she relocated to Glendale in 2000, she joined the Glendale Design Review Board, where she volunteered as a commissioner for five years. During that time, she paid attention to the work of the City Council and thought about one day participating in local government.
In 2006, however, Friedman’s life took a sudden turn when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She went through a year-long journey of treatment, including multiple surgeries and chemotherapy. The experience prompted her to “re-evaluate my path, and I wanted to make a bigger difference. It’s corny, but it’s true,” she says.
After her treatment, she made the jump to politics. She was elected to the Glendale City Council in 2009, serving as mayor from 2012 to 2013. Among her proudest accomplishments on the Council was casting the deciding vote to ban the Glendale Gun Show, and other events like it, on city-owned properties in 2013.
Tackling Tough Issues
Throughout her time in the Legislature, Friedman has crafted creative solutions to some of her district’s most challenging, and at times controversial, issues, centering her work on housing affordability and homelessness, combating climate change and protecting vulnerable communities such as foster youth.
She believes that the most divisive issues are often the most important to work on. “They require people to lean in and be bold, because if they are controversial, any solution you come up with is always going to be, to some people, unpopular,” she says. Rather than remain stagnant on issues and allow them to worsen (she points to homelessness and housing specifically), she brings her unique problem-solving approach to the table, drawing from her experiences in city government as well as her more than two decades in the entertainment business.
“I come from a background of being in the film industry, which is about having a vision and then trying to ‘sell’ people on your vision (or bring consensus around the issues), and finding ways of inspiring them and getting a very large project through when it seems like every moment there’s things that are going to derail it,” she explains. “We have to be able to communicate those solutions and what the problem is and get people to go along with it enough that you can get something done.”
But she understands that working on large-scale policy could take years. “It’s frustrating when you don’t get that more immediate gratification, but sometimes things that are tough take a while,” she says. For example, her speed camera legislation that went into effect in January was the result of four years of collaborating with stakeholders, organizations and residents directly affected by speeding and hit-and-runs. “We spent the time to really understand the real objections and concerns people had about the policy. It was important to acknowledge all of the potential pitfalls, and just to keep working on it until we had done our best to address those concerns,” she says.
With this mindset and approach, Friedman has been able to pass legislation that bans the sale of exotic fur, builds wildlife crossings across busy roadways, prohibits the use of toxic chemicals in personal care products, and more. She’s also tackled these and other challenges in several leadership roles in the Legislature, including as chair of the Assembly Committee on Transportation, the Natural Resources Committee and the Joint Rules Subcommittee on Sexual Harassment Prevention and Response.
Friedman now has her sights set on the House of Representatives. She is among more than a dozen candidates vying for the 30th Congressional District seat, which includes roughly 60% of the 44th District. While the decision to run was a difficult one, she says that there’s much more work to be done nationwide on issues where she’s made meaningful changes in California.
“I’ve been really effective in the Legislature, and I know I can be effective in Congress,” she shares. “I can’t stay home. It’s too important. I’m willing to fly across the country every single week to be away from my 10-year-old because her future really is at stake.”
A Magical Place to Live
Having worked next to Warner Bros., Friedman says Toluca Lake has a special place in her heart. “I loved it so much because it’s safe, and the shops and restaurants are amazing. What’s not to like?” she says, noting that she particularly enjoys the Friday night car shows at Bob’s Big Boy, coffee meetings at Priscilla’s and the salads from Sweetsalt. And like many, she was excited to be in a community with a rich film industry history. “You’ve got these historic film lots, you’ve got Disney right next door, the heart of the entertainment industry, which, for me, as someone working in entertainment, it was just such a magical place to be,” she says.
When asked about the challenges that Toluca Lake is facing, Friedman points to housing, specifically finding ways to build in a way that is additive to the neighborhood. One way the community can get ahead of the issue, she advises, is to identify opportunity sites with underutilized parcels, such as open-air parking lots or vacant commercial buildings, and to support plans for mixed-use or housing that is not overbuilt and that fits in with the area. In making room for new residents, she says the community can also focus on adding infrastructure for active transportation, like protected bike lanes and parking so that people can safely cycle down Riverside Drive and easily visit small businesses.
She has no doubt that Toluca Lake will create opportunities out of this challenge, as it is a very civically and politically involved neighborhood, characteristics that make it fit right in with the rest of the 44th District’s communities. “They have a lot of concern about their community, have a lot of love for their neighborhoods and want to preserve what’s good and change what’s bad, and they are not shy for advocating for that, and I love that,” she says of what makes her district special.
Friedman says the partnership and engagement she’s had with all her constituents makes her decision to leave office bittersweet. But she assures that, if elected to Congress, she will continue fighting for their interests. “Every L.A. congressional member should be making laws and doing policy to help all of L.A.,” she says. “In everything that I’ll do, I will always be open to as much interaction and feedback from Toluca Lake as they’re willing to give me. Whether the neighborhood is on the door of my office or not, I still consider it my community.”
