Rebecca Beth Bauer-Kahan (née Bauer; born October 28, 1978), also known by her initials RBK^{[citation needed]}, is an American attorney and politician who has served as a member of the California State Assembly from the 16th district since 2018. A member of the Democratic Party, her district extends from Lamorinda to the Tri-Valley region of the San Francisco Bay Area.

Bauer-Kahan was born Rebecca Beth Bauer in Portola Valley, California, on October 28, 1978.^[1] She is Jewish.^[2] Her grandparents came to the United States as refugees in 1939 after fleeing Austria to escape the Holocaust.^[3]

Bauer-Kahan spent her childhood in the Bay Area and attended Bay Area public schools. In 2000, she graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a bachelor of arts in psychology. She then enrolled at Georgetown University and graduated with a juris doctor in 2004.^[4]

Bauer-Kahan practiced law in Washington, D.C. before returning to the Bay Area in 2005. As an attorney specializing in environmental law, she led internal investigations into corporations to improve their environmental practices and worked with tech companies on intellectual property cases.^[5] She was also an immigration attorney for the International Refugee Assistance Project, and on their behalf in 2017, she coordinated legal services at San Francisco International Airport to assist refugees and immigrants impacted by the Trump administration’s travel ban.^[6]

In 2010, Bauer-Kahan became a law professor at Santa Clara University, teaching appellate law and legal research and writing. She joined the faculty of Golden Gate University as a law professor in 2014.^[5][7] She decided to enter politics following the 2016 presidential election.^[8]

Bauer-Kahan married her husband, Darren Kahan, in 2007.^[14] When they married, both took the surname Bauer-Kahan.

They have three children together and live in Orinda, California.^[5]