Proposition Positions
Vote No on Prop. 2
- Prop. 2 is a proposed Amendment to the State Constitution that would change the way the State puts money into its “savings account” called the Budget Stabilization Account (BSA) or sometimes referred to as the “rainy day fund.”
- If passed, this measure would require millions, or even billions, of dollars to be locked away every year. This could result in California having as much as $11 Billion in the bank while we underfund-or even cut- vital services like medical care, stable housing, food programs, and higher education. We shouldn’t be locking billions of dollars away waiting for a rainy day. It’s pouring now.
- This ballot measure gives more power to the Governor over the budgeting process by giving only him the authority to declare a “budget emergency” and leaving legislators without the flexibility to tackle major issues, like the poverty crisis.
Vote Yes on Prop. 45
- Prop. 45 would require health insurers to receive approval from the Insurance Commissioner before they can change the rates they charge for health insurance.
- Although the Affordable Care Act required most Californians to have health insurance, it didn’t create cost controls to ensure that health insurers didn’t abuse their customers with uncontrolled and unjustified rate increases.
- This would impose a regulatory system similar to those created to protect consumers that are mandated to purchase automobile and homeowner insurance, and would serve as a control on the out of control profit motive of health insurance companies.
Vote No on Prop. 46
- Prop. 46 would require random drug and alcohol testing of doctors, requires health care practitioners to consult the state prescription drug history database before prescribing certain controlled substances, and increases the cap on pain and suffering medical lawsuits.
- The random drug and alcohol testing of doctors is a carry-over from the failed policies of the “war on drugs”, and only serves to reinforce stigmatization and criminalization- things that California Partnership fights against in every aspect of our work.
- While getting patients the compensation they need and deserve is a laudable goal, this measure is being called a “Frankenstein” proposition, with several different pieces slapped together for political expedience. It’s not an honest way to implement new policies.
Vote Yes on Prop. 47
- Prop 47 would reclassify 6 felonies as misdemeanors for simple drug possession and crimes of poverty, including petty theft and signing bad checks worth less than $950.
- California’s prisons are overcrowded and recidivism rates are higher here than any other state, and mass incarceration contributes heavily to cycles of poverty in California’s low-income and communities of color. Reducing these sentences will help alleviate the current prison overcrowding crisis, make our communities stronger and more resilient, and prevent millions of Californians from being pushed into poverty.
- Estimates range that the State will save from $150 million to $250 million per year from reduced incarceration costs, which, if applied correctly, could be used for community based programs and recidivism reduction.