Whether you’re voting here in Santa Cruz, or a different part of the state you call home, 14 hotly contested statewide propositions proposing changes to taxes, housing, voter ID laws and healthcare are etched in black ink on California’s Nov. 3 ballot.
City on a Hill Press has compiled a description for each of California’s 14 ballot propositions. To vote smart is to vote with purpose.
Proposition 1: If passed, this would provide $11.25 billion in bonds that would largely go toward affordable housing, with an allotted $1.25 billion going toward veterans (homes and farms) which adds only about 0.25 percent to state debt.
Proposition 2: If passed, this would allow the state to divert 20 percent instead of the current 10 percent of general fund taxes into the rainy day fund. The fund ensures that the state would have emergency money in case of political instability, budget crisis or climate disaster.
Proposition 3: If passed, this would not create a new tax, but rather reaffirm the raised income tax for the top 2 percent of earners, making it permanent instead of dropping to a lower tax rate in 2031. The money collected from the tax funds schools, healthcare and other state programs.
Proposition 4: If passed, this would allow local government grassroot candidates to set up their own fund for donations for political campaigns instead of relying on wealthy donors. Notably, New York City instated a similar program prior to California’s proposition, which helped finance Mayor Zohran Mandami’s campaign.
Proposition 5: If passed, this would separate the recall election process from voting on recalling a politician and who would replace them to separate the two votes. The recall would come first, and electing another appointed official would occur at a later date.
Proposition 37: If passed, this creates a home loan program for first-time home buyers with low to moderate incomes, connecting them with proper resources and mortgages below market rate.
Proposition 38: If passed, authorized bonds would go toward disease immunotherapy research. Half of the $8 billion would go to the Michelson Center, and the other half would go to UC-affiliated research centers. See Union Bill on page one for more information.
Proposition 39: Proposition 39, created by state Republicans, is in response to inaccurate accusations of “voter fraud,” and would institute unnecessary barriers and restrictions for voters by issuing voter ID cards and requiring voters to verify their citizen status yearly.
Proposition 40: If passed, it would levy a one-time, 5 percent tax on billionaires in the state of California and funnel cumulative funds back into at-risk communities to support healthcare, food security and education programs. This fiscal support would mitigate effects of H.R. 1 funding slashes by the Trump administration.
Proposition 41: Proposition 41 is a competing measure to Proposition 40, that would work to ban new taxes on personal property. Nullifies Proposition 40, if passed.
Proposition 42: Proposition 42 is also a “kill switch” to Proposition 40. It would prohibit the imposition of additional state taxes, retirement and savings accounts, or other personal property. Nullifies Proposition 40, if passed.
Proposition 43: If passed, it would require a two-thirds majority vote to enact local special taxes instead of a simple majority (50 percent plus one). In effect, this would make it more difficult to pass taxes that fund specific projects or community resources like schools and healthcare or taxes like the billionaire tax.
Proposition 44: If passed, it would require community health clinics to spend 90 percent of revenue on patient medical treatment. Currently, clinics are spending 80 percent of revenue on patients, using the remaining 20 percent to support emergency rooms, staff, equipment and other logistical essentials.
Proposition 45: If passed, it would streamline environmental review for projects deemed essential. It would also limit public comment periods for these projects, and reduce the amount of California Native Tribes consulted.