On Monday, a group of progressive state lawmakers spoke out against Proposition 36, a ballot measure they say will be an expensive crime reform leading to more policing in underserved communities and a return to high incarceration rates similar to the 1980s war on drugs.
Assemblymember Isaac Bryan (D-Los Angeles) said during a news conference at the state Capitol that Californians have long called for real safety solutions that address the root causes of issues like petty crime and substance abuse. He pointed out that these problems often occur in communities with underfunded schools, poor food access, inadequate public health infrastructure, and high rent.
The lawmakers praised Proposition 47, a decade-old measure that reduced certain crimes from felonies to misdemeanors, for cutting the state’s prison population nearly in half. They worry that Proposition 36, which will be voted on in November, threatens to undo this progress.
Bryan, who will soon be vice chair of the Legislative Black Caucus, said Proposition 36 reminds him of past “bipartisan failures” that led to the imprisonment of thousands of Black and brown people for low-level, nonviolent crimes.
It’s not a war on poverty, which is the war we should be waging, Bryan said. It’s the war on poor people.
The Democratic caucus in California is currently divided on how to address the rise in theft and substance abuse across the state. Last week, some Democrats supported Proposition 36, emphasizing the need for mass treatment of drug users and repeat offenders. San José Mayor Matt Mahan said, People are dying who don’t have to die, and businesses are closing that don’t have to close. The answer is treatment.
Governor Gavin Newsom, who opposes Proposition 36, recently signed a package of crime bills targeting organized retail theft and the illegal resale of stolen goods. However, some members of the Legislative Black Caucus opposed parts of this package, calling it too punitive.
Senator Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley), a criminal justice reform advocate and opponent of Proposition 36, acknowledged that there was a slight increase in crime after the pandemic but argued that crime, addiction, and drug use are now decreasing. “It is not the time,” she said.
Proposition 36 would impose stricter sentences for repeat theft and crimes involving the deadly drug fentanyl. It would allow judges to charge third-time property theft offenders with either a misdemeanor or felony and sentence drug traffickers dealing large quantities or carrying firearms to state prison instead of county jail.
The measure is expected to cost anywhere from tens of millions to hundreds of millions of dollars annually, according to the Legislative Analyst’s Office. A recent poll found that 56% of likely California voters, particularly conservatives and moderates, support Proposition 36.
At Monday’s news conference, Skinner, Bryan, and other progressive Democrats criticized the prosecutor-led ballot measure as an expensive solution to a problem that is already improving. They are calling for state funds to be used instead for education and community programs to help prevent incarceration.