CALIFORNIA, USA — As the November election draws near, Proposition 36 was discussed at a joint informational hearing of the Assembly and Senate Public Safety Committees.
Prop 36 is set to appear on the Nov. 5 ballot and would increase penalties on theft and certain drug crimes in California. If passed, it would make changes to laws enacted by Prop 47, which was passed by voters in 2014. Among them, it would convert some misdemeanor crimes into felonies and undo some of the punishment reductions set by Prop 47.
On Tuesday at the hearing, stakeholders and the public shared their stance on Prop 36, including Sacramento County Sheriff Jim Cooper who expressed his support.
"These folks are being robbed blind and people are just walking out with handfuls of stuff. The big stores, the right it off, they charge us higher prices as the consumer, but for those small mom and pops which are the majority of businesses in our state, it's unsustainable and a lot of them have gone out of business," he said.
Cristine Soto DeBerry, executive director of the Prosecutors Alliance of California, spoke out in opposition of Prop 36.
"This is going to undo 10 years of progress we've had in this state of being really smart and surgical about how we respond to different kinds of crime," she said. "Low level conduct are much better treated outside of the prison system."
During public comment, a majority of speakers expressing their opposition.
Some stakeholders, like Los Angeles Regional Reentry Partnership, said it would take the state away from community-based solutions that have reduced recidivism.
But a mother who lost her 22-year-old son to fentanyl poisoning from a counterfeit pill expressed her support.
"I don't want another mother or family to go through what I go through everyday.," said Pamela Smith with Mothers in Grief Support Group. "Vote 'Yes' on Prop 36."
At Tuesday's discussion, Caitlin O'Neil with the Legislative Analyst's Office shared their analysis on the fiscal and policy impacts.
"We estimate that Prop 36, in total, would increase local criminal justice costs likely by the tens of millions of dollars annually," she said.
She added that it would increase the prison population by around a few thousand people and increase court workload.
We have more information about Prop 36 on our election guide. Go to ABC10.com/vote.
WATCH ALSO:
