What is Proposition 36? A look at the “Homelessness, Drug Addiction and Theft Reduction Act”

(KRON) – San Francisco Mayor London Breed, the California District Attorneys Association and the California State Sheriffs Association support Proposition 36, an initiative aimed at reversing a earlier that supporters claim that theft and crime have worsened in California.

So what exactly is the “Homelessness, Drug Addiction and Theft Reduction Act”? Who supports it? Who isn’t? Most importantly, how exactly could it improve some of the state’s most pressing current issues?

What is Proposition 36?

Simply put, Proposition 36 would impose stricter penalties on certain crimes by reclassifying them as more serious crimes. For example, the initiative would add fentanyl, one of America’s deadliest drugs on the market, to a list of drugs including cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine.

With the passage of Proposition 36, anyone arrested with fentanyl and a firearm would now warrant a felony charge, which could carry up to four years in state prison. “Currently, possession of fentanyl and a loaded firearm is punishable by up to a year in prison,” according to Ballotpedia.

Offenders will have to serve their entire sentence in state prison, “regardless of criminal record.” The sentences could also increase based on the amount of illegal drugs sold, the lawmakers wrote.

Proposition 36 would also increase the penalties for theft crimes. Theft offenses of less than $950 would be punishable as misdemeanors for people “who have two or more prior theft-related convictions.” Depending on their criminal record, these offenders could be sentenced to up to three years in jail or prison.

What does it have to do with Proposition 47?

Currently, an act of theft worth less than $950 is punishable by up to six months in prison under Proposition 47. In 2014, voters approved Proposition 47 to classify certain crimes as misdemeanors instead of felonies “unless the “accused had previous convictions for murder, rape, sexual crimes or certain crimes with firearms”.

Proposition 47 also allowed the re-sentencing of people already serving a sentence to reclassify felonies as misdemeanors.

In addition to reducing sentencing, Proposition 47 required state savings from sentence reductions to be spent on mental health services and drug treatment. By 2023, the savings amounted to $95 million, according to the Legislative Analyst’s Office, which estimated that increased penalties for certain crimes under Proposition 36 would reduce savings from the state with Proposition 47.

Declaration for and against Prop 36

San Francisco Mayor London Breed had the following to say about the initiative:

“(Prop. 36) will make specific but impactful changes to our laws around fentanyl and help us address chronic retail theft that harms our retailers, our workers and our cities. I fully support this measure and know that will make a significant difference for California cities.”

Governor Gavin Newsom is against the initiative, saying:

“Prop. 36 takes us back to the 1980s, mass incarceration. It promotes a promise that cannot be kept. I ask those who support it, especially the mayors: where are the treatment strips? where are the beds Twenty-two counties do not have a residential treatment facility. Twenty-two counties have none. I mean, they’re lying to you,” the governor said.

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