California Proposition 5 (2008)

From Ballotpedia

California Proposition 5, or the Nonviolent Offender Rehabilitation Act (or NORA) is an initiated state statute that appeared as a ballot measure on the November 2008 ballot in California, where it was defeated with 40.3% of the vote.^[1]

Election results

California Proposition 5: Defeated
		Votes	Percentage
Yes		5,015,080	40.3%
NO		7,407,454	59.7%
Total votes		12,422,534	100%

Provisions of the initiative

Proposition 5 enacted the following provisions:

• Requires California to expand and increase funding and oversight for individualized treatment and rehabilitation programs for nonviolent drug offenders and parolees.
• Reduces criminal consequences of nonviolent drug offenses by mandating three-tiered probation with treatment and by providing for case dismissal and/or sealing of records after probation.
• Limits court’s authority to incarcerate offenders who violate probation or parole.
• Shortens parole for most drug offenses, including sales, and for nonviolent property crimes.
• Creates numerous divisions, boards, commissions, and reporting requirements regarding drug treatment and rehabilitation.
• Changes certain marijuana misdemeanors to infractions.

Fiscal impact analysis

According to the state of California, the initiative:

• Increased state costs that could exceed $1 billion annually primarily for expanding drug treatment and rehabilitation programs for offenders in state prisons, on parole, and in the community.
• Savings to the state that could exceed $1 billion annually due primarily to reduced prison and parole operating costs.
• Net savings on a one-time basis on capital outlay costs for prison facilities that could exceed $2.5 billion.
• Unknown net fiscal effect on expenditures for county operations and capital outlay.

Supporters

The official proponent of the measure is Daniel Abrahamson.

Argument in favor of Prop 5

Notable arguments that have been made in favor of Prop 5 include:

• Prop 5 would reduce pressure on overcrowded and expensive prisons.
• Prop. 5 creates treatment options for young people with drug problems that do not exist under current law
• Voter-approved Proposition 36 provided treatment, not jail, for nonviolent drug users.
• One-third have completed treatment and became productive, tax-paying citizens.
• Since 2000, Prop. 36 has graduated 84,000 people and saved almost $2 billion."

Donors to the Prop 5 campaign

As of October 30, 2008, the five largest donors to the "Yes on 5" campaign are:

• George Soros, $1,400,000;^[2]
• Jacob Goldfield, $1,400,000.
• Bob Wilson, $2,100,000;
• John Sperling, $1,000,000;
• The Rockit Fund, a New York City-based organization, $500,000.
• The Drug Policy Alliance Network, $400,000.^[3]

Path to Ballot

The petition drive conducted to qualify the measure for the fall ballot was conducted by Progressive Campaigns, Inc. at a cost of about $1.762 million.^[4]

Campaign video

Opposition

• The People Against the Proposition 5 Deception is the official committee against the proposition.^[5]
• Actor Martin Sheen, who announced in late August that he would be a leading spokesperson in opposition to Prop. 5. In his announcement, he said he strongly supports treatment for drug offenders but that treatment "must be accompanied by tough penalties."^[6],^[7]
• The district attorneys of 32 California counties.
• Former Governor Gray Davis
• Former Governor Pete Wilson
• John Walters, the National Drug Control Policy director, a position that is sometimes referred to as the "U.S. drug czar". Walters flew from D.C. to California to campaign against Proposition 5 in late October, saying it "will undermine court-based treatment programs they say have succeeded over the past decade."^[8]

Five California governors (Arnold Schwarzenegger, Gray Davis, Pete Wilson, Jerry Brown, and George Deukmejian) came together on October 29 to announce their joint opposition to the passage of Proposition 5.^[9]

Arguments against Prop 5

Notable arguments that have been made against Prop 5 include:

• Proposition 5 has been called the "Drug Dealers’ Bill of Rights" because it shortens parole for methamphetamine dealers and other drug felons from 3 years to 6 months.
• It would "require California to spend hundreds of millions of dollars a year on rehabilitation programs" during a time that the state's budget is in a deficit and its economy faltering.^[10]
• This measure may provide a 'get-out-of-jail-free' card to many of those accused of other crimes by claiming drugs made them do it, letting them effectively escape criminal prosecution."
• Proposition 5 establishes two new bureaucracies with virtually no accountability, and which will cost hundreds of millions in taxpayer dollars.
• According to some drug court judges in Yolo County, "This is an initiative written by an advocacy group. It is very long, encompassing 36 single-spaced pages in a relatively small font. It makes intricate and detailed amendments to a significant number of existing statutes and executive policies. We doubt that 5 percent of the voters of California will have read the entire text of this new law before they vote on it. Is this a good way to make state law?"^[11]
• Addicted defendants will be permitted five violations of probation or treatment failures based on drug use, and judges will be unable to meaningfully intervene until the sixth violation.

Lawsuit to remove from ballot

Opponents of Proposition 5, including thirty-two district attorneys and former California governors Pete Wilson and Gray Davis petitioned the California Supreme Court to issue a preemptory writ of mandate to remove Proposition 5 from the November ballot. The lawsuit alleges that Proposition 5 attempts to alter the constitution via statute, which is unconstitutional.^[12],^[13]

The California Supreme Court declined to issue the preemptory writ. Generally, initiatives constitutionality are not reviewed until after a vote has passed and the initiative becomes law.^[14]

Donors opposed to Prop. 5

Some of the larger donors to the committee opposing Prop. 5 are:

• California Correctional Peace Officers Association: $1.8 million.^[15]
• Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation: $175,000.

Campaign video

Newspaper endorsements

Editorial boards in favor

• The San Francisco Bay Guardian^[16]
• Orange County Register.

Editorial boards opposed

Newspaper editorial boards opposed to the passage of Proposition 5 include:

The Los Angeles Times[17] The Pasadena Star News[18] San Diego Union-Tribune. Sacramento Bee. San Francisco Chronicle.

Fresno Bee. San Jose Mercury News Stockton Record Contra Costa Times Bakersfield Californian[19]

External links

• Yes on Proposition 5
• No on Proposition 5

Basic information

• California Voter's Guide for Proposition 5
• Official Text of the Initiative
• Signatures pending validation
• CaliforniaPropositions.org Prop 5 information page
• California Voter Online guide to Proposition 5
• Smart Voter Guide to Proposition 5
• Institute of Governmental Studies Hot Topic: Proposition 5

References

1. ↑ Official election results
2. ↑ Sacramento Bee, "George Soros adds $400,000 to Yes on 5", September 3, 2008
3. ↑ Details of $5,000+ donations
4. ↑ Campaign expenditure details
5. ↑ People against the Prop 5 deception
6. ↑ Los Angeles Times, "'No on Prop. 5' links liberal Martin Sheen with unlikely allies, August 27, 2008
7. ↑ Mercury News, "Martin Sheen opposes drug measure on Calif. ballot", August 27, 2008
8. ↑ Sacramento Bee; The Sacto 9-1-1 blog, "U.S. drug czar rips Prop. 5", October 21, 2008
9. ↑ Associated Press, "5 California governors oppose drug initiative", October 30, 2008
10. ↑ San Francisco Chronicle, "Nation's drug czar denounces Calif. ballot measure", October 21, 2008
11. ↑ Sacramento Bee, "Our View: Judges believe Proposition 5's flaws are fatal", October 3, 2008
12. ↑ No on Prop 5 Campaign Files With State Supreme Court to Remove It From the Ballot, July 17, 2008
13. ↑ Calif. justices asked to reject drug initiative
14. ↑ California Supreme Court rejects efforts to strike prop 5 from ballot.
15. ↑ Donations to "No on the Prop 5 deception" committee
16. ↑ San Francisco Bay Guardian, "Endorsements 2008: State ballot measures", October 8, 2008
17. ↑ Los Angeles Times, "No on Proposition 9", September 26, 2008
18. ↑ Pasadena Star News, "Dangerous Prop 5", September 2, 2008
19. ↑ Fox & Hounds Daily, "California endorsements grid"

Additional reading

• Peter Schrag: Props. 5 and 8 will make waves nationally
• California Ballot Propositions May Start National Trend on Prisons and Rehabilitation of Drug Offenders and Same Sex Marriage

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