Jay Obernolte

Jay Obernolte is a certified flight instructor and martial arts teacher as well as a video game developer and studio owner.¹ He and his wife Heather live in Big Bear Lake, where they raised two sons.¹

He earned an engineering and applied science degree at Caltech, a master's in artificial intelligence at UCLA and a public administration doctorate at California Baptist University.¹ His path to Congress included service as Big Bear Lake's mayor and in California's Assembly.¹ He has also served on local boards overseeing fire protection, transit, waste management and the airport.¹

Obernolte now serves on Energy and Commerce, Budget, and Science, Space and Technology, chairing the Research and Technology Subcommittee.¹ In July, he and Democrat Lori Trahan introduced the FRONTIER Act, proposing national oversight standards for advanced artificial intelligence.² The proposal includes risk management, independent audits and incident reporting requirements, with different obligations based on the size of a developer.²

He supports lower federal spending, a balanced budget, stronger border enforcement and a varied, market driven energy supply.³ His technology positions emphasize consumer privacy alongside room for innovation.³ Democrat Tessa Lynn Hodge is his November challenger for the district's congressional seat.⁴