California Parks and Environment Bond (June 2018)

The California State Legislature did not approve this bond measure in 2017; however, the legislature did approve the Parks, Environment, and Water Bond, which was certified for the election on June 5, 2018. Proposition 68 was approved.

California Parks and Environment Bond
Election date November 6, 2018
Topic Bond issues and Forests and parks
Status Not on the ballot
Type Bond issue	Origin State Legislature
List of California measuresCalifornia Proposition 68 - JuneCalifornia Proposition 69 - JuneCalifornia Proposition 70 - JuneCalifornia Proposition 71 - JuneCalifornia Proposition 72 - JuneCalifornia Proposition 1California Proposition 2California Proposition 3California Proposition 4California Proposition 5California Proposition 6California Proposition 7California Proposition 8California Proposition 10California Proposition 11California Proposition 12Submit

The California Parks and Environment Bond was not on the ballot in California as a legislatively referred bond act on November 6, 2018.

The measure would have authorized $3.105 billion in general obligation bonds for parks, environmental protection projects, and climate-adaptation projects, including:

• $900 million for neighborhood parks in areas determined to have a low number of parks;
• $425 million for grants to local government on a per capita basis for park creation and improvement;
• $5 million for grants to local agencies that approved local ballot measures between 2012 and 2018 for local or regional park infrastructure;
• $110 million for grants to local government and eligible nonprofit organizations for parks serving youth and racial minority communities.
• $330 million for restoration of existing state park facilities and low-cost overnight accommodations;
• $45 million for nonmotorized infrastructure, such as trails and greenways;
• $40 million for a competitive grant program for local government projects related to parks and the environment to encourage recreational opportunities, tourism, and economic development;
• $70 million for projects pursuant to the California River Parkways Act of 2004, including protecting urban creeks;
• $90 million for grants for protecting and enhancing urban creeks, with preference given to disadvantaged communities;
• $10 million to implement the Urban Streams Restoration Program;
• $30 million to the Salton Sea Authority for projects related to air quality and habitat benefits;
• $25 million for competitive grants to local government and eligible nonprofit organizations for stormwater capture projects;
• $145 million for state conservancies to acquire land and provide public access;
• $180 million for projects to enhance and protect coastal and ocean resources; and
• $100 million to fund projects for lower-cost accommodations on coastal public lands or coastal lands operated by nonprofit organizations;
• $600 million for climate-adaptation and resiliency projects designed to improve a community's ability to address the impacts of climate change.

The bond issue was known as the California Clean Water, Climate, Coastal Protection, and Outdoor Access For All Act of 2018.

Text of measure

Full text

The full text is available here.

Support

Arguments

• Asm. Eduardo Garcia (D-56) said, “This park bond, throughout the process, has focused on making sure that we prioritize the areas that prior park bond investments forgot.

Opposition

Arguments

• Asm. Jay Obernolte (R-33) stated, "That is money that our children and our children's children are obligated to pay back. I cannot support increasing our state's debt by that amount."

Path to the ballot

See also: Authorizing bonds in California

Section 1 of Article XVI of the California Constitution requires that bond issues of $300,000 or more be referred to voters for approval or rejection. The California State Legislature is required to pass bond acts by a two-thirds vote of all the members in both legislative chambers during a single two-year-long legislative session. The governor must also sign the bond act.

The bond act was introduced into the legislature as Assembly Bill 18 (AB 18) on December 5, 2016. On March 20, 2017, the California State Assembly passed the bill, with 54 members voting in favor and 19 voting against. An additional seven members did not vote on AB 18. The bill did not receive a vote in the state Senate before the 2017 legislative session adjourned on September 15, 2017.

Assembly vote

March 20, 2017

California AB 18 Assembly Vote
Result		Votes	Percentage
a Yes		54	73.97%
No		19	26.03%

See also

Suggest a link

• 2018 ballot measures
• California 2018 ballot measures
• California Legislature
• Bond issues on the ballot
• Environmental policy in California

External links

• California Clean Water, Climate, Coastal Protection, and Outdoor Access For All Act of 2018