Mountain Views News          Saturday, August 27, 2016

SATURDAY, AUGUST 27, 2016

SECTION B

AROUND SAN GABRIEL VALLEY


SCHIFF HOSTS TOWN HALL, DISCUSSES 

GUN VIOLENCE IN AMERICA


Congressman Adam Schiff held the first of a 
new program— “A Conversation with Your 
Congressman” – featuring informal talks in his 
Congressional District. The first event Monday 
night at the Witherbee Auditorium at the LA Zoo 
discussed gun violence in America. 

 Schiff has been an advocate for gun violence 
reform. 

 He joined a spontaneous sit-in on the floor of the 
House of Representatives June 22 to call attention 
to the tragedy in Orlando, Florida, where 49 
people were killed and 53 others wounded when 
gunman Omar Mateen opened fire inside the 
Pulse nightclub on June 12.

 During “A Conversation with Your 
Congressman” Rick Zbur, Equality California 
Executive Director, also referenced the tragedy 
in Orlando, Florida and the broader implications 
of violence and hate crimes perpetrated against 
the LGBT community across the country as 
motivating him to take on this issue. 

 Jason George, series regular on Grey’s Anatomy 
and a member of Everytown for Gun Safety 
Creative Coalition stated that he supports the 
2nd Amendment, and yet it allows passage 
of commonsense gun safety measures. Mr. 
George, as a representative for Everytown and an 
American, believes there needs to be a space were 
citizens of this country can have a thoughtful 
conversation around the issue of guns with both 
sides coming together. Thoughtful conversations 
bring about understanding and change. 

 Loren Lieb, Co-President, San Fernando Valley 
Chapter - Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun 
Violence and Women Against Gun Violence 
Broad Member, shared her heart-wrenching 
experience when the white supremacist, Buford 
O. Furrow, Jr., walked into the lobby of the North 
Valley Jewish Community Center in Granada 
Hills and opened fire with a semiautomatic 
weapon, firing 70 shots into the complex. The 
gunfire wounded five people: three children, 
a teenage counselor, and an office worker. One 
of the three children shot was her son, who was 
seriously injured. Her other son who was also at 
the complex did not knowing if his brother was 
injured or fatally wounded. Ms. Lieb and her 
two sons are committed to ending gun violence 
and all three participate in public forums on the 
matter.

There was also a push to pass Proposition 63, in 
November, which would prohibit possession of 
large-capacity magazines and require background 
checks to purchase ammunition.

 Schiff said he will continue to hold relevant 
forums for his constituents on social, political, 
economic and environmental issues that affect us 
all. D. Lee/MVNews

CALIFORNIA’S NOVEMBER BALLOT MEASURES

With all of the attention being paid to the race for 
the White House, California voters would do well 
to spend a great deal of their time and attention 
learning about the many ballot measures that will 
be voted on in November and that could change 
the quality of life in California forever (either in a 
good way or a bad way). Below are snippets on the 
measures that have qualified so far (17)!

PROPOSITION 51

School Bonds. Funding for K-12 School and 
Community College Facilities. Initiative Statutory 
Amendment.

Authorizes $9 billion in general obligation bonds: 
$3 billion for new construction and $3 billion for 
modernization of K-12 public school facilities; $1 
billion for charter schools and vocational education 
facilities; and $2 billion for California Community 
Colleges facilities. Bars amendment to existing 
authority to levy developer fees to fund school 
facilities, until new construction bond proceeds are 
spent or December 31, 2020, whichever is earlier. Bars 
amendment to existing State Allocation Board process 
for allocating school construction funding, as to these 
bonds. Appropriates money from the General Fund 
to pay off bonds. Summary of estimate by Legislative 
Analyst and Director of Finance of fiscal impact on 
state and local government: State General Fund costs 
of $17.6 billion to pay off principal ($9 billion) and 
interest ($8.6 billion) on bonds over a period of 35 
years. Annual payments would average $500 million. 
Annual payments would be relatively low in the 
initial and final few years and somewhat higher in the 
intervening years. 

 

PROPOSITION 52

State Fees on Hospitals. Federal Medi-Cal Matching 
Funds. Initiative Statutory and Constitutional 
Amendment.

Increases required vote to two-thirds for the Legislature 
to amend a certain existing law that imposes fees on 
hospitals (for purpose of obtaining federal Medi-
Cal matching funds) and that directs those fees and 
federal matching funds to hospital-provided Medi-Cal 
health care services, to uncompensated care provided 
by hospitals to uninsured patients, and to children's 
health coverage. Eliminates law's ending date. 
Declares that law's fee proceeds shall not be considered 
revenues for purposes of applying state spending limit 
or determining required education funding. Summary 
of estimate by Legislative Analyst and Director of 
Finance of fiscal impact on state and local government: 
State savings from increased revenues that offset state 
costs for children's health coverage of around $500 
million beginning in 2016-17 (half-year savings) to 
over $1 billion annually by 2019-20, likely growing 
between 5 percent to 10 percent annually thereafter. 
Increased revenues to support state and local public 
hospitals of around $90 million beginning in 2016-17 
(half-year) to $250 million annually by 2019-20, likely 
growing between 5 percent to 10 percent annually 
thereafter. 

 

PROPOSITION 53

Revenue Bonds. Statewide Voter Approval. Initiative 
Constitutional Amendment. 

Requires statewide voter approval before any revenue 
bonds can be issued or sold by the state for projects 
that are financed, owned, operated, or managed by the 
state or any joint agency created by or including the 
state, if the bond amount exceeds $2 billion. Prohibits 
dividing projects into multiple separate projects to 
avoid statewide voter approval requirement. Summary 
of estimate by Legislative Analyst and Director of 
Finance of fiscal impact on state and local government: 
The fiscal effect on state and local governments is 
unknown and would vary by project. It would depend 
on (1) the outcome of projects brought before voters, 
(2) the extent to which the state relied on alternative 
approaches to the projects or alternative financing 
methods for affected projects, and (3) whether those 
methods have higher or lower costs than revenue 
bonds.

PROPOSITION 54

Legislature. Legislation and Proceedings. Initiative 
Constitutional Amendment and Statute. 

Prohibits Legislature from passing any bill unless it 
has been in print and published on the Internet for 
at least 72 hours before the vote, except in cases of 
public emergency. Requires the Legislature to make 
audiovisual recordings of all its proceedings, except 
closed session proceedings, and post them on the 
Internet. Authorizes any person to record legislative 
proceedings by audio or video means, except closed 
session proceedings. Allows recordings of legislative 
proceedings to be used for any legitimate purpose, 
without payment of any fee to the State. Summary 
of estimate by Legislative Analyst and Director of 
Finance of fiscal impact on state and local government: 
Increased costs to state government of potentially $1 
million to $2 million initially and about $1 million 
annually for making additional legislative proceedings 
available in audiovisual form on the Internet. 

PROPOSITION 55

Tax Extension to Fund Education and Healthcare. 
Initiative Constitutional Amendment.

Extends by twelve years the temporary personal 
income tax increases enacted in 2012 on earnings over 
$250,000 (for single filers; over $500,000 for joint filers; 
over $340,000 for heads of household). Allocates these 
tax revenues 89% to K-12 schools and 11% to California 
Community Colleges. Allocates up to $2 billion per 
year in certain years for healthcare programs. Bars 
use of education revenues for administrative costs, but 
provides local school governing boards discretion to 
decide, in open meetings and subject to annual audit, 
how revenues are to be spent. Summary of estimate by 
Legislative Analyst and Director of Finance of fiscal 
impact on state and local government: Increased state 
revenues annually from 2019 through 2030—likely 
in the $5 billion to $11 billion range initially—with 
amounts varying based on stock market and economic 
trends. Increased revenues would be allocated under 
constitutional formulas to schools and community 
colleges, budget reserves and debt payments, and 
health programs, with remaining funds available for 
these or other state purposes. 

 

PROPOSITION 56

Cigarette Tax to Fund Healthcare, Tobacco Use 
Prevention, Research, and Law Enforcement. 
Initiative Constitutional Amendment and Statute.

Increases cigarette tax by $2.00 per pack, with 
equivalent increase on other tobacco products and 
electronic cigarettes containing nicotine. Allocates 
revenues primarily to increase funding for existing 
healthcare programs; also for tobacco use prevention/
control programs, tobacco-related disease research and 
law enforcement, University of California physician 
training, dental disease prevention programs, and 
administration. Excludes these revenues from 
Proposition 98 funding requirements. If tax causes 
decreased tobacco consumption, transfers tax 
revenues to offset decreases to existing tobacco-funded 
programs and sales tax revenues. Requires biennial 
audit. Summary of estimate by Legislative Analyst and 
Director of Finance of fiscal impact on state and local 
government: Net increase in excise tax revenues in the 
range of $1.1 billion to $1.6 billion annually by 2017-18, 
with revenues decreasing slightly in subsequent years. 
The majority of funds would be used for payments to 
health care providers. The remaining funds would 
be used for a variety of specified purposes, including 
tobacco-related prevention and cessation programs, 
law enforcement programs, medical research on 
tobacco-related diseases, and early childhood 
development programs. 

 

PROPOSITION 57

Criminal Sentences. Juvenile Criminal Proceedings 
and Sentencing. Initiative Constitutional Amendment 
and Statute.

Allows parole consideration for persons convicted of 
nonviolent felonies upon completion of full prison 
term for primary offense, as defined. Authorizes 
Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to award 
sentence credits for rehabilitation, good behavior, or 
educational achievements. Requires Department of 
Corrections and Rehabilitation to adopt regulations to 
implement new parole and sentence credit provisions 
and certify they enhance public safety. Provides 
juvenile court judges shall make determination, upon 
prosecutor motion, whether juveniles age 14 and 
older should be prosecuted and sentenced as adults. 
Summary of estimate by Legislative Analyst and 
Director of Finance of fiscal impact on state and local 
government: Net state savings that could range from 
the tens of millions of dollars to the low hundreds 
of millions of dollars annually primarily due to a 
reduction in the prison population from additional 
paroles granted and credits earned. Net county costs 
that could range from the millions to tens of millions 
of dollars annually, declining to a few million dollars 
after initial implementation of the measure. 

 PROPOSITION 58

English language education

 

PROPOSITION 59

Campaign finance: voter instruction. 

PROPOSITION 60 

Adult Films. Condoms. Health Requirements. 
Initiative Statute. 

Requires performers in adult films to use condoms 
during filming of sexual intercourse. Requires 
producers of adult films to pay for performer 
vaccinations, testing, and medical examinations 
related to sexually transmitted infections. Requires 
producers to obtain state health license at beginning of 
filming and to post condom requirement at film sites. 
Imposes liability on producers for violations, on certain 
distributors, on performers if they have a financial 
interest in the violating film, and on talent agents 
who knowingly refer performers to noncomplying 
producers. Permits state, performers, or any state 
resident to enforce violations. Summary of estimate 
by Legislative Analyst and Director of Finance of fiscal 
impact on state and local government: Potentially 
reduced state and local tax revenue of millions or tens 
of millions of dollars per year. Likely state costs of a 
few million dollars annually to administer the law. 
Possible ongoing net costs or savings for state and local 
health and human services programs. (15-0004.) (Full 
Text)

 

PROPOSITION 61

State Prescription Drug Purchases. Pricing Standards. 
Initiative Statute. 

Prohibits state agencies from paying more for a 
prescription drug than the lowest price paid for 
the same drug by the United States Department of 
Veterans Affairs. Applies to any program where the 
state is the ultimate payer for a drug, even if the state 
does not purchase the drug directly. Exempts certain 
purchases of prescription drugs funded through Medi-
Cal. Fiscal impact: It is the opinion of the Legislative 
Analyst and Director of Finance that the measure, if 
adopted, may result in a substantial net change in state 
or local finances. 

 

PROPOSITION 62

Death Penalty. Initiative Statute.

Repeals death penalty as maximum punishment 
for persons found guilty of murder and replaces it 
with life imprisonment without possibility of parole. 
Applies retroactively to persons already sentenced to 
death. States that persons found guilty of murder and 
sentenced to life without possibility of parole must 
work while in prison as prescribed by the Department 
of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Increases to 60% 
the portion of wages earned by persons sentenced 
to life without the possibility of parole that may be 
applied to any victim restitution fines or orders against 
them. Summary of estimate by Legislative Analyst 
and Director of Finance of fiscal impact on state and 
local government: Net reduction in state and local 
government costs of potentially around $150 million 
annually within a few years due to the elimination of 
the death penalty. 

 

PROPOSITION 63 

Firearms. Ammunition Sales. Initiative Statute.

Prohibits possession of large-capacity ammunition 
magazines, and requires their disposal by sale to 
dealer, destruction, or removal from state. Requires 
most individuals to pass background check and obtain 
Department of Justice authorization to purchase 
ammunition. Requires most ammunition sales be made 
through licensed ammunition vendors and reported to 
Department of Justice. Requires lost or stolen firearms 
and ammunition be reported to law enforcement. 
Prohibits persons convicted of stealing a firearm from 
possessing firearms. Establishes new procedures for 
enforcing laws prohibiting firearm possession by felons 
and violent criminals. Requires Department of Justice 
to provide information about prohibited persons to 
federal National Instant Criminal Background Check 
System. Summary of estimate by Legislative Analyst 
and Director of Finance of fiscal impact on state and 
local government: Increased state costs in the tens 
of millions of dollars annually related to regulating 
ammunition sales, likely offset by various regulatory 
fees authorized by the measure. Increase in court and 
law enforcement costs, not likely to exceed the tens 
of millions of dollars annually, related to removing 
firearms from prohibited persons as part of court 
sentencing proceedings. These costs could be offset 
to some extent by fees authorized by the measure. 
Potential increase in state and local correctional 
costs, not likely to exceed the low millions of dollars 
annually, related to new and increased penalties. 

 

PROPOSITION 64

Marijuana Legalization. Initiative Statute.

Legalizes marijuana and hemp under state law. 
Designates state agencies to license and regulate 
marijuana industry. Imposes state excise tax on retail 
sales of marijuana equal to 15% of sales price, and state 
cultivation taxes on marijuana of $9.25 per ounce of 
flowers and $2.75 per ounce of leaves. Exempts medical 
marijuana from some taxation. Establishes packaging, 
labeling, advertising, and marketing standards and 
restrictions for marijuana products. Allows local 
regulation and taxation of marijuana. Prohibits 
marketing and advertising marijuana to minors. 
Authorizes resentencing and destruction of records 
for prior marijuana convictions. Summary of estimate 
by Legislative Analyst and Director of Finance of fiscal 
impact on state and local government: Net reduced 
costs ranging from tens of millions of dollars to 
potentially exceeding $100 million annually to state 
and local governments related to enforcing certain 
marijuana-related offenses, handling the related 
criminal cases in the court system, and incarcerating 
and supervising certain marijuana offenders. Net 
additional state and local tax revenues potentially 
ranging from the high hundreds of millions of dollars 
to over $1 billion annually related to the production 
and sale of marijuana. Most of these funds would 
be required to be spent for specific purposes such as 
substance use disorder education, prevention, and 
treatment. 

 

PROPOSITION 65

Carry-Out Bags. Charges. Initiative Statute.

Redirects money collected by grocery and certain 
other retail stores through sale of carry-out bags, 
whenever any state law bans free distribution of a 
particular kind of carry-out bag and mandates the 
sale of any other kind of carry-out bag. Requires 
stores to deposit bag sale proceeds into a special fund 
administered by the Wildlife Conservation Board 
to support specified categories of environmental 
projects. Provides for Board to develop regulations 
implementing law. Summary of estimate by Legislative 
Analyst and Director of Finance of fiscal impact on 
state and local government: If voters uphold the state’s 
current carryout bag law, redirected revenues from 
retailers to the state, potentially in the several tens 
of millions of dollars annually. Revenues would be 
used for grants for certain environmental and natural 
resources purposes. If voters reject the state’s current 
carryout bag law, likely minor fiscal effects. 

 

PROPOSITION 66

Death Penalty. Procedures. Initiative Statute.

Changes procedures governing state court appeals 
and petitions challenging death penalty convictions 
and sentences. Designates superior court for initial 
petitions and limits successive petitions. Imposes time 
limits on state court death penalty review. Requires 
appointed attorneys who take noncapital appeals to 
accept death penalty appeals.

Exempts prison officials from existing regulation 
process for developing execution methods. Authorizes 
death row inmate transfers among California state 
prisons. States death row inmates must work and pay 
victim restitution. States other (Continued on B3) 

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