A long-awaited initiative from California that would make changes to Proposition 47 became eligible this week to appear on the state ballots in November.
The Secretary of State’s Office announced on Tuesday that the Bill to Reduce Homelessness, Drug Addiction and Theft had enough valid signatures to go before voters in the general election. The measure required at least 546,651 valid petition signatures to qualify for a vote.
The secretary of state will confirm on June 27 that the measure will be eligible for the November ballot unless proponents withdraw it.
The initiative, backed by the California District Attorneys Association, would amend parts of Proposition 47, a 2014 ballot measure that reduced certain lower-level crimes to misdemeanors and set a $950 threshold for shoplifting.
The new initiative would increase penalties for a handful of drug and theft crimes. One of the key provisions would increase penalties for someone convicted of shoplifting with two or more prior theft-related convictions.
The financiers claim that theft and other crimes have increased in recent years. They blame Proposition 47, although experts say it’s unclear whether the measure was actually a factor.
Supporters of the measure were confident their initiative would qualify for a vote before the June 27 deadline.
Gov. Gavin Newsom, Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas, D-Hollister, and Senate President Pro Tem Mike McGuire, D-Healdsburg, all oppose the measure. Legislative leaders have their own package of 14 bills aimed at addressing shoplifting that they are currently rushing through the Capitol.
The bills recently drew criticism from Republicans and promoters after McGuire and Rivas announced they planned to add amendments that would invalidate the legislation if voters approve the ballot measure in November. Another change would make the bills take effect immediately after Newsom signs them.
Democrats argue this would avoid potential conflicts between the ballot measure and shoplifting laws. But Republicans say the amendments “set a dangerous precedent, forcing our voters into a false choice between legislative reforms and necessary changes to Proposition 47.”
Legislative leaders hope to get their measures to the governor’s desk in the next two weeks.
