California Changes to Criminal Realignment Policies Initiative (2020)
| California Changes to Criminal Realignment Policies Initiative | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 3, 2020 | |
| Topic Law enforcement | |
| Status Not on the ballot | |
| Type State statute | Origin Citizens |
The California Changes to Criminal Realignment Policies Initiative (#18-0008) was not on the ballot in California as an initiated state statute on November 3, 2020.
The ballot initiative would have made changes to the state's criminal realignment law, which was passed in 2011.[1] The criminal realignment law transferred the management and supervision of certain felons, who were convicted of non-serious, non-violent, and non-sexual crimes (as defined in law), from the state government to county governments.[2]
The ballot initiative would have required that persons sentenced for non-serious, non-violent, and nonsexual crimes (as defined in law) after November 3, 2020, serve sentences in state prisons, not county jails as required by the 2011 law. The ballot initiative would have also required state parole authorities, rather than county probation departments, to supervise persons released on parole for non-serious, non-violent, and nonsexual felonies.[1]
Text of measure
Ballot title
The official ballot title was as follows:[3]
| “ |
Eliminates Certain 2011 Criminal Justice Measures. Initiative Statute.[4] |
” |
Petition summary
The summary provided for inclusion on signature petition sheets was as follows:[3]
| “ |
Requires that individuals sentenced for certain non-serious, non-violent, and nonsexual felonies after November 3, 2020 serve their time in state prison—rather than in county jail, as 2011 law requires. Requires that individuals released on parole for these low-level felonies after November 3, 2020 be supervised by state parole authorities rather than county probation departments. After November 3, 2020, prohibits courts from suspending the concluding portion of the prison sentence of individuals convicted of these low-level felonies and placing such felons on mandatory supervision by county authorities.[4] |
” |
Fiscal impact
The fiscal impact statement was as follows:[3]
| “ |
Increased state criminal justice system costs of around a billion dollars annually, due to an increase in the state prison and parole populations. Net reduction in county criminal justice system costs likely in the hundreds of millions of dollars annually that are currently supported by realignment revenues provided by the state, due to a decline in county correctional populations. The state would have various options to offset some or all of its increased costs—including changing the amount of realignment revenue counties receive and/or county responsibilities. Such actions would offset some or all of the reductions in county costs.[4] |
” |
Path to the ballot
In California, the number of signatures required for an initiated state statute is equal to 5 percent of the votes cast in the preceding gubernatorial election. Petitions are allowed to circulate for 180 days from the date the attorney general prepares the petition language. Signatures need to be certified at least 131 days before the general election. As the verification process can take multiple months, the secretary of state provides suggested deadlines for ballot initiatives.
The requirements to get an initiated state statute, filed before the 2018 general election, certified for the 2020 ballot:
- Signatures: 365,880 valid signatures were required.
- Deadline: The deadline for signature verification will be in late June 2020.
Signatures are first filed with local election officials, who determine the total number of signatures submitted. If the total number is equal to at least 100 percent of the required signatures, then local election officials perform a random check of signatures submitted in their counties. If the random sample estimates that more than 110 percent of the required number of signatures are valid, the initiative is eligible for the ballot. If the random sample estimates that between 95 and 110 percent of the required number of signatures are valid, a full check of signatures is done to determine the total number of valid signatures. If less than 95 percent are estimated to be valid, the initiative does not make the ballot.
Initiative #18-0008
Proponents filed the ballot initiative on August 3, 2018.[1] The Attorney General of California issued ballot language for the initiative on October 10, 2018, allowing a signature drive to begin. The signature deadline for the initiative was April 17, 2019. Signatures were not filed.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 California Attorney General, "Initiative #18-0008," August 3, 2018
- ↑ California Judicial Branch, "Criminal Justice Realignment," accessed October 11, 2018
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 California Secretary of State, "Initiatives and Referenda Cleared for Circulation," accessed April 23, 2018
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
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