California Sports Wagering Initiative (2020)
| California Sports Wagering Initiative | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 3, 2020 | |
| Topic Gambling | |
| Status Not on the ballot | |
| Type Constitutional amendment | Origin Citizens |
The California Sports Wagering Initiative (#18-0003) was not on the ballot in California as an initiated state statute on November 3, 2020.
The measure would have allowed the California State Legislature to authorize sports betting and other types of banking and percentage games. As of 2019, the state constitution, which prohibited gambling unless the type is specified, did not allow for sports wagering.[1]
Text of measure
Ballot title
The official ballot title was as follows:[2]
| “ |
Allow New Types of Gambling in California. Initiative Constitutional Amendment.[3] |
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Petition summary
The summary provided for inclusion on signature petition sheets was as follows:[2]
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Allows federally recognized Native American tribes to operate roulette and craps games on tribal lands, subject to compacts negotiated by the Governor and ratified by the Legislature. Allows licensed gambling establishments, such as card rooms, to conduct on-site sports wagering and to operate Nevada-style card games, and may result in authorization of sports wagering on tribal lands because of federal law. Prohibits Governor from approving gaming on newly acquired off-reservation tribal lands and negotiating gaming compacts with non-federally recognized tribes.[3] |
” |
Fiscal impact
The fiscal impact statement was as follows:[2]
| “ |
Unclear net fiscal impact, as it would depend primarily on how the measure is interpreted and implemented as well as the extent to which businesses and members of the public participate in the new gaming activities.[3] |
” |
Constitutional changes
- See also: Article IV, California Constitution
The measure would have amended Section 19 of Article IV of the California Constitution. The following underlined text would have been added and struck-through text would have been deleted:[1]
Note: Hover over the text and scroll to see the full text.
(a) The Legislature has no power to authorize lotteries and shall prohibit the sale of lottery tickets in the State.
(b) The Legislature may provide for the regulation of horse races and horse race meetings and wagering on the results.
(c) Notwithstanding subdivision (a) the Legislature by statute may authorize cities and counties to provide for bingo games, but only for charitable purposes.
(d) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), there is authorized the establishment of a California State Lottery.
(e) The Legislature has no power to authorize, and shall prohibit casinos of the type currently operating in Nevada and New Jersey.
(f) (e) Notwithstanding subdivisions (a) and (e), and any other provision of state law, the Governor is authorized to negotiate and conclude compacts, subject to ratification by the Legislature, for the operation of slot machines and for the conduct of lottery games and banking and percentage card games by federally recognized Indian tribes on Indian lands in California in accordance with federal law. Accordingly, slot machines, lottery games, and banking and percentage card games are hereby permitted to be conducted and operated on tribal lands subject to those compacts.
(g) (f) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), the Legislature may authorize private, nonprofit, eligible organizations, as defined by the Legislature, to conduct raffles as a funding mechanism to provide support for their own or another private, nonprofit, eligible organization's beneficial and charitable works, provided that (1) at least 90 percent of the gross receipts from the raffle go directly to beneficial or charitable purposes in California, and (2) any person who receives compensation in connection with the operation of a raffle is an employee of the private nonprofit organization that is conducting the raffle. The Legislature, two-thirds of the membership of each house concurring, may amend the percentage of gross receipts required by this subdivision to be dedicated to beneficial or charitable purposes by means of a statute that is signed by the Governor.
(g) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), the Legislature may authorize banking and percentage games including and not limited to sports wagering.[3]
Sponsors
Arguments
- Russell Lowery, a political consultant who filed the ballot initiative, said, "I think the biggest reason for this is consumer protection. It’s going on now. Because of the revenue the state could generate from legal activity plus the consumer protections that could be afforded the gambling public, it ought to be regulated."[4]
Path to the ballot
In California, the number of signatures needed to qualify a measure for the ballot is based on the total number of votes cast for the office of governor. For an initiated state statute, petitioners must collect signatures equal to five percent of the most recent gubernatorial vote. To get a measure on the 2020 ballot, the number of signatures required will be tied to voter turnout in 2018. In California, initiatives can be circulated for 180 days. Signatures needed to be certified at least 131 days before the 2020 general election, which was around June 25, 2020. As the signature verification process can take several weeks, the California secretary of state issues suggested deadlines for several months before the certification deadline.
The following is the timeline for the initiative:[5]
- Russell Lowery submitted a letter requesting a title and summary on June 11, 2018.
- A title and summary was issued by the California attorney general's office on August 16, 2018.
- Signatures were due for the ballot initiative on February 13, 2019. The secretary of state's office announced that the initiative failed on February 28, 2019.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 California Attorney General, "Initiative 18-0003," June 11, 2018
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 California Secretary of State, "Initiatives and Referenda Cleared for Circulation," accessed August 20, 2018
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source. Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "quotedisclaimer" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ Los Angeles Times, "Initiative to legalize sports betting in California proposed for 2020 ballot," June 12, 2018
- ↑ California Secretary of State, "Ballot Measures," accessed June 12, 2018
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