Steven Suchil: a remembrance

As he became a fixture in Sacramento’s Capitol community during a 36-year career working on insurance and finance issues in the California Legislature, State executive agencies and the private sector, Steven M. Suchil had a simple formula for success.

“To be effective,” he said, “your word has to be your bond.”

Suchil died June 20 at a Roseville hospital he had entered to be treated for cancer. He was 76.

Suchil’s primary focus during his career was insurance, most notably, in his view, workers’ compensation insurance. His jobs included two in the Legislature: principal consultant to the Assembly Finance and Insurance Committee from 1989-1993; and principal consultant to former Sen. Deborah Ortiz of Sacramento in 2004, when he advised both her and Senate leadership on insurance and other matters.

As he performed his duties analyzing legislation and negotiating bills, Suchil built a reputation among colleagues and lawmakers as an honest broker for whom politics was a secondary consideration.

“Steve was a legislative committee consultant with the empathy of a Democrat, the skepticism of a Republican and the ethics of an independent,” said Patrick Johnston, a former Democratic Assemblyman and Senator who chaired the Assembly Finance and Insurance Committee when Suchil worked there. “Smart, soft-spoken and analytical, he cared more about public policy than politics.”

In a sign he eschewed full-throated partisanship, Suchil became lifelong friends with John Caldwell, the consultant for the committee’s Republican minority.

“Steve had a reputation for fair and thorough analyses, Caldwell said. “And in a very partisan world, he treated minority party Republicans with respect. For him honesty was the only policy. He believed lying or misrepresenting facts to a decisionmaker was unforgivable.”

A U.S. Air Force veteran who earned his law degree in 1980 from the UC Davis School of Law, Suchil held jobs outside the Legislature that kept him in the insurance and finance arena.

From 1997-2002, he worked at the California Department of Insurance, where he served as deputy commissioner for policy, research and special projects. His duties included supervising the department’s legislative operations. From 2004 until his retirement in 2016, Suchil was assistant vice-president and counsel for state affairs at the American Insurance Association. He developed and implemented legislative and regulatory strategies for the trade group across nine Western states, including California.

Suchil also worked at the state Department of Banking, in two separate four-year terms that sandwiched his time at the Assembly Finance and Insurance Committee. During those two stints, he coordinated the department’s legislative program and worked with a team that reviewed bank failures, among other duties.

And when he was at the state Office of Administrative Law from 1980-1985, Suchil focused on insurance and banking issues.

“Steve was wicked smart,” said Caldwell, “yet he was humble and unassuming. He was widely respected by insurers, lobbyists, regulators and legislators.”

Remembrances of Suchil posted on social media and elsewhere portray him as a kind, gentle and generous person, always there to provide moral support or a helping hand. Even his sarcasm, say friends, was delivered with warmth.

Caldwell said Suchil’s kind nature “came through in how he treated people professionally.” But Suchil was no pushover, Caldwell said.

“Some people confuse being kind with being soft,” he said. “Steve was not soft. He was known for not pulling punches. But he could deliver the brutal truth without being brutal. He fought hard for whoever he worked for. But he did it without being unpleasant.”

Suchil’s generosity was reflected in his charity work and volunteer activities. He mentored veterans working to pursue a legal career at the UC Davis School of Law. Shortly before he passed away, Steve joined the board of Project Amigo, a nonprofit dedicated to helping disadvantaged children in west-central Mexico lead more prosperous, healthy lives.

Suchil enjoyed dining at Mulvaney’s B&L, a favorite spot for Capitol community denizens. For proprietor and chef Patrick Mulvaney, Suchil was more than a loyal customer. He was a valued friend.

Speaking of himself and his wife Bobbin, Mulvaney said, “We came to know Steve in the early days of the B&L as a member of the Capitol crowd. While his wry humor drew us in, we bonded over his deep love for food and music. That quiet humor and gentle nature became, over time, an important thread of the B&L.”

When Suchil wasn’t eating at Mulvaney’s, he often was in his backyard grilling hot dogs, burgers and ribeye steaks for family and friends. When dinner guests stood to help him clean up, Suchil told them to sit down, admonishing them not to disturb some mysterious “system” he said he had for handling that chore.

Music was an important part of Suchil’s life. He grew up listening to 1960s rock, and became a big fan of outlaw country. He played the guitar – rhythm, lead and bass – and later in life taught himself how to play Hawaiian slack key style.

Through the years, he was a member of several bands. Former band mates described him as a mentor who made them better musicians.

“Steve was like a big brother for the younger members of the band,” said Gavin Blair, who played with Suchil in a band called Suspects in 1978-79. “They respected and appreciated his advice. He was pretty advanced in his playing skills for us all.”

Another Suspects member, Russ Tolman, recalled, “Steve taught us how to play in a band. His bass playing was the rock that kept the tempo and the song together.” Suchil was older than the other members of the band, said Tolman, and “had great stories of seeing the Sixties bands we all idolized.”

Mulvaney described Suchil as a “shanachie,” a teller of stories and legends in Irish culture.

“In Irish circles, the most valued person is the shanachie – often the quiet one sitting in the corner who tells the stories that keep our community strong,” Mulvaney said. “As a transplant from another place, I was always drawn to Steve’s stories of the California that was and his suggestions of the California that could be. And the treasure that I keep is that he was always talking about the California that is for everyone.”

Suchil is survived by his wife of 32 years, Jan Lynn Owen; his son Rudy Suchil; sister Sally Suchil; nephews Joel Suchil, Noah Tempkin (Melissa) and Jeremy Tempkin (Sarah); and grandnieces Xochi and Kennedy Tempkin.

The family requests, in lieu of flowers, that donations be sent to a favorite charity or to Project Amigo, at https://www.projectamigo.org/.

A celebration of Suchil’s life will be held Sunday, July 14, from 1-4 p.m. at Mulvaney’s B&L, 1215 19^th Street, Sacramento CA.