Capitol Weekly’s Top 100: Paula Treat

61. Paula Treat

Paula Treat is an icon of the third house, but more than that she is a force of nature. We’re pretty sure that in another life Treat was an Amazon warrior – a real one too, not some shill for that punk Jeff Bezos. Or maybe she was George Patton, though thankfully she’s not saddled with the high-pitched squeaky voice that assuredly gave him some kind of weird complex. But we digress. In this incarnation she started one of California’s very first female-owned lobbying firms, which she has operated solo for a half century. She’s needed all her accumulated grit because in this life she’s about half the size of her Amazonian predecessors (Or Patton, who was 6’ 2”). But whatever she lacks in physical size she more than makes up for in smarts, determination and guile. She’s as effective a lobbyist as they come, focusing these days on plastics recycling, middle mile broadband and big tribal issues. She somehow manages to be both tough and charming in the same breath, and her smarts, energy and persistence are unsurpassed. Full disclosure: she is also an Open California board member.

Updated Aug. 26, 2025