We were so proud of ourselves. We passed Prop. 36 to end the crime wave in California. Of course Newsom and the Sacramento Democrats were opposed to it—but Newsom did not campaign against. No need to. He understands how Sacramento works. Previously the voter passed a $7 water storage bond—but it did not force him to spend a dime.
In this case, we passed a measure to tighten up the crime laws and to finance interventions, recovery and treatments. He knew he would not spend a dime on that—so we passed an anti-crime bill, without the ability to enforce it.
“California lawmakers in the State Senate on Tuesday began the process of figuring out how to fund and fully implement Proposition 36, the crime measure voters overwhelmingly passed that reinstated felony sentences and prison time for some repeat theft and drug crimes.
The ballot initiative itself did not include a specific funding strategy for the expected increase in court cases, incarcerated people, and drug and mental health treatment required as part of the new law. The Democratic-led legislature and Gov. Gavin Newsom, who fought the measure, are now left to decide how to move forward.”
Government is a joke in California.
California’s new crime law lacks resources, money that lawmakers and Gov. Newsom will need to approve
Ashley Zavala , KCRA, 2/25/25 https://www.kcra.com/article/california-prop-36-lacks-resources-money/63925281?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Email%20-%20Politics&utm_source=67bf175b4972c1d7aa7ffc6afb5298c4&brzu=&lctg=674ce1b2d702e32b6be02398&[email protected]
SACRAMENTO, Calif. —
California lawmakers in the State Senate on Tuesday began the process of figuring out how to fund and fully implement Proposition 36, the crime measure voters overwhelmingly passed that reinstated felony sentences and prison time for some repeat theft and drug crimes.
The ballot initiative itself did not include a specific funding strategy for the expected increase in court cases, incarcerated people, and drug and mental health treatment required as part of the new law. The Democratic-led legislature and Gov. Gavin Newsom, who fought the measure, are now left to decide how to move forward.
“The voters have spoken, and we are committed to fund and implement Proposition 36,” said Democratic Berkeley State Sen. Jesse Arreguin at the start of the special hearing on Tuesday to analyze the issue.
Lawmakers spent three hours listening to local law enforcement, public defenders, courts and county health treatment officials about the impact so far and what’s needed.
Newsom’s administration expects the new law will translate into an extra 4,000 people in California’s prisons, which is money he has said is earmarked in his proposed state spending plan.
State court officials estimated they’ll need more resources to handle the extra 30,000 to 40,000 felony cases statewide. Francine Byrne with the Judicial Council of California told lawmakers so far about 56% of the cases are theft-related while 44% are drug-related.
However, local panelists said the major missing piece is the resources for the “treatment mandated felony” option Proposition 36 provided so that offenders could get drug or mental health treatment to have the felony expunged.
Stanislaus County Public Defender Jennifer Jennison told lawmakers more than 140 of those felonies have been filed since January, and many of them remain in jail waiting for those services. She noted her county does not have a plan for drug treatment and the county’s mental health systems are at capacity.
“We lack a lot,” San Benito County Sheriff Eric Taylor told lawmakers, speaking about his county’s mental health resources. He told them the county’s one contracted psychiatrist doesn’t feel comfortable treating incarcerated people. He also noted residential treatment in the area is privatized and expensive.
“Our jails have become the de facto treatment centers because of the lack of bed space, not only mental health, but for treatment bed space,” Taylor said. “We do want people to leave our custody better than when they came in. We are fighting an uphill battle because we just don’t have the support.”
Lawmakers agreed that the state needs to do more to provide more treatment and mental health resources to counties.
“With the proponent’s messaging during the entire campaign, like all on my TV and on my digital advertising it was all, ‘this isn’t about incarceration. This is about treatment,’ not putting anyone in prison,” said Democratic San Francisco State Senator Scott Wiener. “Treatment, treatment, treatment. I’m all for treatment and behavioral health, so to me, I think it makes sense, and we should’ve been doing this for years, providing more support to our counties.”
“Proposition 36 is demonstrating its effectiveness in providing law enforcement with the necessary tools to hold repeat retail thieves accountable,” the Yes on Prop 36 co-chair Greg Totten said in part in a lengthy statement on Tuesday. “We are continuing to encourage our elected officials to respect the will of the people by ensuring Prop 36 is integrated effectively with our current laws and allocate additional resources to enhance accountable drug treatment programs. By doing so, we can ensure delivery of the best possible outcomes for our communities and those suffering from addiction.”
Republican Roseville State Senator Roger Niello said while the price tag could be in the hundreds of millions of dollars, he noted it was a tiny percentage of California’s state budget.
“Prop 36 was the will of voters and it is the job of budget writers to implement the will of the voters,” Niello told reporters after the hearing. “In not funding it, they are specifically denying the will of 70% of the voters. Then 70% of those voters can decide how they want to handle that when they go to the ballot box.”
Lawmakers and the governor will spend the next four months figuring out how much money to provide the Prop 36 effort through the state’s budget process. The state spending plan is typically finalized at the end of June.
