Capitol Weekly’s Top 100: Mark McKenzie

47. Mark McKenzie

Mark McKenzie is another of those legislative aides who might not stand out in a crowd of two, but you can sure bet that his presence is felt all around the Capitol community. He’s the Staff Director of the Senate Appropriations Committee, meaning any bill with a big fiscal component will pass his desk if it ever has any hope of becoming law. That is the definition of power. McKenzie pairs that with tremendous longevity and institutional knowledge. This is his 21st year with Senate Appropriations and he’s been staff director for more than half of that time, since 2012. He’s worked under eight committee chairs and four pro Tems…and the ninth and fifth ones respectively are on the way. If they are smart, they will continue to lean heavily on McKenzie’s wisdom and political acumen. At least if they want to have any chance of success over what all of us expect to be more years of fiscal Hell here in California.

Updated Aug. 26, 2025