Placerville resident and retired conservative Southern California state Sen. John V. Briggs died April 15 at the age of 90.
His son, former El Dorado County supervisor Ron Briggs, joked his father probably enjoyed the liberty of dying on tax day “because everything my dad did was oriented to beat the tax man out of as much money as he legally could.”
While in office John Briggs was noted for being a prolific legislator, concentrating much of his attention on insurance reform, a wider application of the death penalty, nuclear energy development and construction regulation.
Born on March 8, 1930, John was the fourth of five children born in Alpena, S.D. After his mother Jessie divorced his father, a strict Southern Baptist minister, she moved the children to Fuller Park — a place in Southern California now known as Fullerton.
At one point all the children were in foster homes for a year or more so Jessie, who worked as a waitress, could stabilize her income and offer them a home. John spent two years in foster care but eventually his mother regained custody of all her children.
Later Jessie met and married Dan Zickler (known as “Pop”), who John considered his father. Ron said it was Zickler who brought the family to Placerville.
A born entrepreneur, John attended high school and college in Southern California and later served in the U.S. Air Force, seeing action in Korea. After his stint as an Air Force pilot, John served in the U.S. Naval Reserve. Near the end of his military service John met his future wife, Carmen Nicasio, at a United Services Organizations dance. They married in 1951.
John worked two jobs. During the day he and his wife ran a gas station and at night he worked on an assembly line at a Delco Remy battery plant.
As fortune would have it, John met a man named Ben Sportsman, who invited him to work with him selling insurance. Later the firm became Sportsman-Briggs and eventually John bought out Sportsman.
John was involved in the local chamber of commerce and eventually elevated to state vice chair of that organization. He was also active in other civic groups, including the Jaycees, Rotary Club and Boys and Girls Club.
Along the way John had several political mentors. One of them was Walter Knott, founder of Knott’s Berry Farm. “Walter Knott was a John Bircher and ultra conservative,” recalled Ron Briggs.
“Dad was also good friends with Carl Karcher, who started his fortune by pushing a hot dog cart in downtown L.A. He opened a restaurant in Anaheim then opened up three Carl’s Jrs. selling hamburgers and later went public … He was ultra conservative and a very good friend of my dad’s.”
John Briggs’ political career officially began when he was elected in 1966 to the state Assembly. He maintained his brokerage business because, as Ron put it, legislators weren’t paid much then. From 1967-75 he served the 35th District of the state Assembly and from 1975-77 in the 69th District of the state Assembly. From 1977-1981 he served in the 35th District of the state Senate. It was during this time that he sold his brokerage firm.
Retired El Dorado County Supervisor Jack Sweeney said he met John Briggs in the 1970s while working on a real estate deal for the county. “He was always helpful,” recalled Sweeney, saying Briggs also worked with them on trying to get a new courthouse.
Former county supervisor John Knight remembers John Briggs as “very respectful and kind and always knew what was going on politically in different areas of the state.”
John Briggs sponsored several legislative initiatives in California, including 1978’s controversial Proposition 6, which failed. Prop. 6 would have required the firing of any teacher who was found to be “advocating, imposing, encouraging or promoting” homosexual activity.
John joined Howard Jarvis and Paul Gann as a proponent of Proposition 13, which restricts property tax to 1% of the full cash value of the property. Ron Briggs said his father was the one who put together the campaign to get the measure passed.
He also backed Proposition 7, which expanded the application of the death penalty and life imprisonment without parole and he authored the Clean Indoor Act that banned smoking in public buildings.
John Briggs also created Caltrans District 11 that separated Orange County from Los Angeles County, a move that continues to bring billions of transportation dollars to Orange County.
He helped author the Safe Meat Act that established strict guidelines for restaurants to use 100% pure beef in any burger to call it a hamburger.
During John Briggs’ time in the Legislature he was a member of the Western Interstate Nuclear Board. In the Assembly he chaired the Agriculture and Atomic Development committees. While in the Senate he chaired the Governmental Efficiency and Governmental Investigations and Reports committees.
In 1981 John Briggs retired because, as Ron put it, he couldn’t make enough money. Meanwhile he secured two contracts to do lobbying. Ron said he joined his father in the lobbying firm in 1982. During that time Ron said his father wrote legislation regarding drunk driving, including the initial driving under the influence guidelines.
John lobbied from 1981 to 1992 before ultimately selling the firm.
In 2000 John Briggs moved to the Lake Tahoe area, where he became a successful real estate investor selling beachfront property. In 2009 he moved back to Placerville.
A resident of Placerville on and off since 1971, John Briggs enjoyed his ranch called the Z&B (Zickler & Briggs) and was popular with locals for his Bing cherries and other produce he sold at the farmers’ market.
One of Ron’s fondest memories of his dad is how he loved to load the grandkids in a van and drive them all over California — Disneyland, San Francisco, Lake Tahoe or even a movie. “He just took them and they loved it,” said Ron.
“We also had a hell of a lot of parties at his place — epic parties.”
Reflecting back on his father’s life, Ron said, “He touched a lot of lives.”
His son, former El Dorado County supervisor Ron Briggs, joked his father probably enjoyed the liberty of dying on tax day “because everything my dad did was oriented to beat the tax man out of as much money as he legally could.”
While in office John Briggs was noted for being a prolific legislator, concentrating much of his attention on insurance reform, a wider application of the death penalty, nuclear energy development and construction regulation.
Born on March 8, 1930, John was the fourth of five children born in Alpena, S.D. After his mother Jessie divorced his father, a strict Southern Baptist minister, she moved the children to Fuller Park — a place in Southern California now known as Fullerton.
At one point all the children were in foster homes for a year or more so Jessie, who worked as a waitress, could stabilize her income and offer them a home. John spent two years in foster care but eventually his mother regained custody of all her children.
Later Jessie met and married Dan Zickler (known as “Pop”), who John considered his father. Ron said it was Zickler who brought the family to Placerville.
A born entrepreneur, John attended high school and college in Southern California and later served in the U.S. Air Force, seeing action in Korea. After his stint as an Air Force pilot, John served in the U.S. Naval Reserve. Near the end of his military service John met his future wife, Carmen Nicasio, at a United Services Organizations dance. They married in 1951.
John worked two jobs. During the day he and his wife ran a gas station and at night he worked on an assembly line at a Delco Remy battery plant.
As fortune would have it, John met a man named Ben Sportsman, who invited him to work with him selling insurance. Later the firm became Sportsman-Briggs and eventually John bought out Sportsman.
John was involved in the local chamber of commerce and eventually elevated to state vice chair of that organization. He was also active in other civic groups, including the Jaycees, Rotary Club and Boys and Girls Club.
Along the way John had several political mentors. One of them was Walter Knott, founder of Knott’s Berry Farm. “Walter Knott was a John Bircher and ultra conservative,” recalled Ron Briggs.
“Dad was also good friends with Carl Karcher, who started his fortune by pushing a hot dog cart in downtown L.A. He opened a restaurant in Anaheim then opened up three Carl’s Jrs. selling hamburgers and later went public … He was ultra conservative and a very good friend of my dad’s.”
John Briggs’ political career officially began when he was elected in 1966 to the state Assembly. He maintained his brokerage business because, as Ron put it, legislators weren’t paid much then. From 1967-75 he served the 35th District of the state Assembly and from 1975-77 in the 69th District of the state Assembly. From 1977-1981 he served in the 35th District of the state Senate. It was during this time that he sold his brokerage firm.
Retired El Dorado County Supervisor Jack Sweeney said he met John Briggs in the 1970s while working on a real estate deal for the county. “He was always helpful,” recalled Sweeney, saying Briggs also worked with them on trying to get a new courthouse.
Former county supervisor John Knight remembers John Briggs as “very respectful and kind and always knew what was going on politically in different areas of the state.”
John Briggs sponsored several legislative initiatives in California, including 1978’s controversial Proposition 6, which failed. Prop. 6 would have required the firing of any teacher who was found to be “advocating, imposing, encouraging or promoting” homosexual activity.
John joined Howard Jarvis and Paul Gann as a proponent of Proposition 13, which restricts property tax to 1% of the full cash value of the property. Ron Briggs said his father was the one who put together the campaign to get the measure passed.
He also backed Proposition 7, which expanded the application of the death penalty and life imprisonment without parole and he authored the Clean Indoor Act that banned smoking in public buildings.
John Briggs also created Caltrans District 11 that separated Orange County from Los Angeles County, a move that continues to bring billions of transportation dollars to Orange County.
He helped author the Safe Meat Act that established strict guidelines for restaurants to use 100% pure beef in any burger to call it a hamburger.
During John Briggs’ time in the Legislature he was a member of the Western Interstate Nuclear Board. In the Assembly he chaired the Agriculture and Atomic Development committees. While in the Senate he chaired the Governmental Efficiency and Governmental Investigations and Reports committees.
In 1981 John Briggs retired because, as Ron put it, he couldn’t make enough money. Meanwhile he secured two contracts to do lobbying. Ron said he joined his father in the lobbying firm in 1982. During that time Ron said his father wrote legislation regarding drunk driving, including the initial driving under the influence guidelines.
John lobbied from 1981 to 1992 before ultimately selling the firm.
In 2000 John Briggs moved to the Lake Tahoe area, where he became a successful real estate investor selling beachfront property. In 2009 he moved back to Placerville.
A resident of Placerville on and off since 1971, John Briggs enjoyed his ranch called the Z&B (Zickler & Briggs) and was popular with locals for his Bing cherries and other produce he sold at the farmers’ market.
One of Ron’s fondest memories of his dad is how he loved to load the grandkids in a van and drive them all over California — Disneyland, San Francisco, Lake Tahoe or even a movie. “He just took them and they loved it,” said Ron.
“We also had a hell of a lot of parties at his place — epic parties.”
Reflecting back on his father’s life, Ron said, “He touched a lot of lives.”
Placerville resident and retired conservative Southern California state Sen. John V. Briggs died April 15 at the age of 90.
His son, former El Dorado County supervisor Ron Briggs, joked his father probably enjoyed the liberty of dying on tax day “because everything my dad did was oriented to beat the tax man out of as much money as he legally could.”
While in office John Briggs was noted for being a prolific legislator, concentrating much of his attention on insurance reform, a wider application of the death penalty, nuclear energy development and construction regulation.
Born on March 8, 1930, John was the fourth of five children born in Alpena, S.D. After his mother Jessie divorced his father, a strict Southern Baptist minister, she moved the children to Fuller Park — a place in Southern California now known as Fullerton.
At one point all the children were in foster homes for a year or more so Jessie, who worked as a waitress, could stabilize her income and offer them a home. John spent two years in foster care but eventually his mother regained custody of all her children.
Later Jessie met and married Dan Zickler (known as “Pop”), who John considered his father. Ron said it was Zickler who brought the family to Placerville.
A born entrepreneur, John attended high school and college in Southern California and later served in the U.S. Air Force, seeing action in Korea. After his stint as an Air Force pilot, John served in the U.S. Naval Reserve. Near the end of his military service John met his future wife, Carmen Nicasio, at a United Services Organizations dance. They married in 1951.
John worked two jobs. During the day he and his wife ran a gas station and at night he worked on an assembly line at a Delco Remy battery plant.
As fortune would have it, John met a man named Ben Sportsman, who invited him to work with him selling insurance. Later the firm became Sportsman-Briggs and eventually John bought out Sportsman.
John was involved in the local chamber of commerce and eventually elevated to state vice chair of that organization. He was also active in other civic groups, including the Jaycees, Rotary Club and Boys and Girls Club.
Along the way John had several political mentors. One of them was Walter Knott, founder of Knott’s Berry Farm. “Walter Knott was a John Bircher and ultra conservative,” recalled Ron Briggs.
“Dad was also good friends with Carl Karcher, who started his fortune by pushing a hot dog cart in downtown L.A. He opened a restaurant in Anaheim then opened up three Carl’s Jrs. selling hamburgers and later went public … He was ultra conservative and a very good friend of my dad’s.”
John Briggs’ political career officially began when he was elected in 1966 to the state Assembly. He maintained his brokerage business because, as Ron put it, legislators weren’t paid much then. From 1967-75 he served the 35th District of the state Assembly and from 1975-77 in the 69th District of the state Assembly. From 1977-1981 he served in the 35th District of the state Senate. It was during this time that he sold his brokerage firm.
Retired El Dorado County Supervisor Jack Sweeney said he met John Briggs in the 1970s while working on a real estate deal for the county. “He was always helpful,” recalled Sweeney, saying Briggs also worked with them on trying to get a new courthouse.
Former county supervisor John Knight remembers John Briggs as “very respectful and kind and always knew what was going on politically in different areas of the state.”
John Briggs sponsored several legislative initiatives in California, including 1978’s controversial Proposition 6, which failed. Prop. 6 would have required the firing of any teacher who was found to be “advocating, imposing, encouraging or promoting” homosexual activity.
John joined Howard Jarvis and Paul Gann as a proponent of Proposition 13, which restricts property tax to 1% of the full cash value of the property. Ron Briggs said his father was the one who put together the campaign to get the measure passed.
He also backed Proposition 7, which expanded the application of the death penalty and life imprisonment without parole and he authored the Clean Indoor Act that banned smoking in public buildings.
John Briggs also created Caltrans District 11 that separated Orange County from Los Angeles County, a move that continues to bring billions of transportation dollars to Orange County.
He helped author the Safe Meat Act that established strict guidelines for restaurants to use 100% pure beef in any burger to call it a hamburger.
During John Briggs’ time in the Legislature he was a member of the Western Interstate Nuclear Board. In the Assembly he chaired the Agriculture and Atomic Development committees. While in the Senate he chaired the Governmental Efficiency and Governmental Investigations and Reports committees.
In 1981 John Briggs retired because, as Ron put it, he couldn’t make enough money. Meanwhile he secured two contracts to do lobbying. Ron said he joined his father in the lobbying firm in 1982. During that time Ron said his father wrote legislation regarding drunk driving, including the initial driving under the influence guidelines.
John lobbied from 1981 to 1992 before ultimately selling the firm.
In 2000 John Briggs moved to the Lake Tahoe area, where he became a successful real estate investor selling beachfront property. In 2009 he moved back to Placerville.
A resident of Placerville on and off since 1971, John Briggs enjoyed his ranch called the Z&B (Zickler & Briggs) and was popular with locals for his Bing cherries and other produce he sold at the farmers’ market.
One of Ron’s fondest memories of his dad is how he loved to load the grandkids in a van and drive them all over California — Disneyland, San Francisco, Lake Tahoe or even a movie. “He just took them and they loved it,” said Ron.
“We also had a hell of a lot of parties at his place — epic parties.”
Reflecting back on his father’s life, Ron said, “He touched a lot of lives.”
His son, former El Dorado County supervisor Ron Briggs, joked his father probably enjoyed the liberty of dying on tax day “because everything my dad did was oriented to beat the tax man out of as much money as he legally could.”
While in office John Briggs was noted for being a prolific legislator, concentrating much of his attention on insurance reform, a wider application of the death penalty, nuclear energy development and construction regulation.
Born on March 8, 1930, John was the fourth of five children born in Alpena, S.D. After his mother Jessie divorced his father, a strict Southern Baptist minister, she moved the children to Fuller Park — a place in Southern California now known as Fullerton.
At one point all the children were in foster homes for a year or more so Jessie, who worked as a waitress, could stabilize her income and offer them a home. John spent two years in foster care but eventually his mother regained custody of all her children.
Later Jessie met and married Dan Zickler (known as “Pop”), who John considered his father. Ron said it was Zickler who brought the family to Placerville.
A born entrepreneur, John attended high school and college in Southern California and later served in the U.S. Air Force, seeing action in Korea. After his stint as an Air Force pilot, John served in the U.S. Naval Reserve. Near the end of his military service John met his future wife, Carmen Nicasio, at a United Services Organizations dance. They married in 1951.
John worked two jobs. During the day he and his wife ran a gas station and at night he worked on an assembly line at a Delco Remy battery plant.
As fortune would have it, John met a man named Ben Sportsman, who invited him to work with him selling insurance. Later the firm became Sportsman-Briggs and eventually John bought out Sportsman.
John was involved in the local chamber of commerce and eventually elevated to state vice chair of that organization. He was also active in other civic groups, including the Jaycees, Rotary Club and Boys and Girls Club.
Along the way John had several political mentors. One of them was Walter Knott, founder of Knott’s Berry Farm. “Walter Knott was a John Bircher and ultra conservative,” recalled Ron Briggs.
“Dad was also good friends with Carl Karcher, who started his fortune by pushing a hot dog cart in downtown L.A. He opened a restaurant in Anaheim then opened up three Carl’s Jrs. selling hamburgers and later went public … He was ultra conservative and a very good friend of my dad’s.”
John Briggs’ political career officially began when he was elected in 1966 to the state Assembly. He maintained his brokerage business because, as Ron put it, legislators weren’t paid much then. From 1967-75 he served the 35th District of the state Assembly and from 1975-77 in the 69th District of the state Assembly. From 1977-1981 he served in the 35th District of the state Senate. It was during this time that he sold his brokerage firm.
Retired El Dorado County Supervisor Jack Sweeney said he met John Briggs in the 1970s while working on a real estate deal for the county. “He was always helpful,” recalled Sweeney, saying Briggs also worked with them on trying to get a new courthouse.
Former county supervisor John Knight remembers John Briggs as “very respectful and kind and always knew what was going on politically in different areas of the state.”
John Briggs sponsored several legislative initiatives in California, including 1978’s controversial Proposition 6, which failed. Prop. 6 would have required the firing of any teacher who was found to be “advocating, imposing, encouraging or promoting” homosexual activity.
John joined Howard Jarvis and Paul Gann as a proponent of Proposition 13, which restricts property tax to 1% of the full cash value of the property. Ron Briggs said his father was the one who put together the campaign to get the measure passed.
He also backed Proposition 7, which expanded the application of the death penalty and life imprisonment without parole and he authored the Clean Indoor Act that banned smoking in public buildings.
John Briggs also created Caltrans District 11 that separated Orange County from Los Angeles County, a move that continues to bring billions of transportation dollars to Orange County.
He helped author the Safe Meat Act that established strict guidelines for restaurants to use 100% pure beef in any burger to call it a hamburger.
During John Briggs’ time in the Legislature he was a member of the Western Interstate Nuclear Board. In the Assembly he chaired the Agriculture and Atomic Development committees. While in the Senate he chaired the Governmental Efficiency and Governmental Investigations and Reports committees.
In 1981 John Briggs retired because, as Ron put it, he couldn’t make enough money. Meanwhile he secured two contracts to do lobbying. Ron said he joined his father in the lobbying firm in 1982. During that time Ron said his father wrote legislation regarding drunk driving, including the initial driving under the influence guidelines.
John lobbied from 1981 to 1992 before ultimately selling the firm.
In 2000 John Briggs moved to the Lake Tahoe area, where he became a successful real estate investor selling beachfront property. In 2009 he moved back to Placerville.
A resident of Placerville on and off since 1971, John Briggs enjoyed his ranch called the Z&B (Zickler & Briggs) and was popular with locals for his Bing cherries and other produce he sold at the farmers’ market.
One of Ron’s fondest memories of his dad is how he loved to load the grandkids in a van and drive them all over California — Disneyland, San Francisco, Lake Tahoe or even a movie. “He just took them and they loved it,” said Ron.
“We also had a hell of a lot of parties at his place — epic parties.”
Reflecting back on his father’s life, Ron said, “He touched a lot of lives.”
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