Capitol Weekly’s Top 100: Chris Hannan

44. Chris Hannan

The State Building and Construction Trades Council is one of the biggest players in California politics (i.e., they spend a lot of money around the Capitol), particularly when it comes to housing policy, and Chris Hannan is their fresh-faced leader. Hannan took the reins in 2023, the next in a long line of SBCTC presidents who have commanded power and respect in and around Sacramento. The SBCTC is the largest construction trades council in the nation, representing half a million members in more than a dozen crafts, including 70,000 apprentices. Hannan was previously the Executive Secretary of the Los Angeles/Orange Counties Building and Construction Trades Council and a Council Representative from 2012 to 2021, roles that prepared him to follow in the footsteps of such legendary SBCTC presidents as Robbie Hunter and Bob Balgenorth. But he had to really earn his stripes this year during the CEQA reform battles…uh, negotiations…that dominated the Capitol for months. Was SBCTC’s faceoff with Danny Curtin (No. 46 on this list) and the Carpenters in the CEQA fight a defining moment for Hannan’s leadership? We’ll see, but he sure didn’t hurt himself any.

Updated August 26, 2025