Voters back criminal justice reforms, reject rent-control expansion

California voters on Tuesday supported a ballot measure that will toughen penalties for thefts and repeat offenders but also will eliminate funding for social services, while another ballot initiative to expand rent-control protections was defeated.

Of the 10 statewide initiatives, Proposition 36 got the most attention and eventually more than 70% of the vote.

Supporters said it was an overdue effort to stiffen penalties and target smash-and-grab thefts and repeat robbery offenders. Opponents said it would cancel millions in funding for mental health, drug treatment and rehabilitation programs and result in mass incarceration in state prisons.

The main change Prop 36 introduced was upping misdemeanors to felony charges for some drug offenses and thefts. The proposition will change California criminal law to require certain drug possession and thefts under $950 to be charged as felonies, mostly for defendants who have prior convictions for similar offenses.

Those crimes were reduced to misdemeanors under Proposition 47, which voters in the state passed about 10 years ago amid concerns over prison overcrowding.

Prop 36 also will establish harsher penalties for organized robberies involving groups of thieves.

The LA County Board of Supervisors formally opposed the measure in September. A motion by Supervisors Holly Mitchell and Hilda Solis said Prop 47 provides millions of dollars for housing services, mental health care, addition treatment and job training. The then-proposed Prop 36 would “result in a loss of funding for Los Angeles County programs that provide alternatives to incarceration and necessary supportive services,” according to the motion.

Supervisors also contended the measure would lead to increased rates of incarceration, higher court costs and stripping funding from programs that aim to reduce recidivism and crime.

Supervisor Kathryn Barger, dissented, arguing that Prop 36 “will reinstate accountability on crimes destroying the quality of life of law-abiding people in Los Angeles County.”

“I believe this proposition isn’t about overturning Proposition 47 in its entirety,” Barger said in a statement. “Proposition 36 was created by a group of bi-partisan state legislators. It’s focused on modifying legal loopholes that repeat offenders exploit as they manipulate the system to avoid legal consequences.”

Voters reject expansion of rent-control

Proposition 33 aimed to broaden local governments’ options for imposing rent control to more types of housing by repealing a 1995 law that restricts rent control for housing in California. Over 62% of voters rejected the measure as of Wednesday morning.

Under the existing law known as “Costa-Hawkins,” cities are note allowed to enact rent control for single-family housing or buildings constructed after 1995.

Backers said the Prop 33 would provide give much-needed protections for tenants struggling to make ends meet, especially seniors living on fixed incomes. Critics claimed the measure would worsen the state’s housing shortage by discouraging construction of new rental housing and noted that two similar measures were previously rejected in 2018 and 2020.

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