Initiative To Amend California’s Prop.47 Collects Enough Signatures To Land On November Ballot

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A mannequin is seen on the street after a store was broken into in Hollywood, California on June 1, 2020, after a third day of protests and looting in California. Most arrests were related to alleged looting. Major US cities -- convulsed by protests, clashes with police and looting since the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd a week ago -- braced Monday for another night of unrest. More than 40 cities have imposed curfews after consecutive nights of tension that included looting and the trashing of parked cars. (Photo by Robyn Beck / AFP) (Photo by ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images)
A mannequin is seen on the street after a store was broken into in Hollywood, California on June 1, 2020, after a third day of protests and looting in California. (Photo by ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images)

OAN’s Taylor Tinsley
4:11 PM – Friday, April 19, 2024

More than 900,000 signatures have been gathered to roll back features on a decade-old law in California, known as Proposition 47. Many residents and state leaders say Prop.47, is fueling the state’s growing homelessness and crime crises.

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Californians For Safer Communities announced they were able to get well-over the required amount of 546,651 signatures needed to get an amendment for Prop.47 on the November ballot.

The bipartisan coalition is backed by several major retailers including Target, Walmart and Home Depot, in hopes of increasing criminal penalties for theft and drug charges.

Prop.47 was approved by nearly 60% of California voters in 2014 and aimed to reduce incarceration levels for non violent offenders, reclassifying certain offenses from felonies to misdemeanors.

“Now people can go into stores and steal up to $950 with practically no consequences. This makes businesses close,” said San Francisco community activist Leanne Louis. “We have seen so many businesses leave the Bay area and we’re really concerned about the future.”

The initiative, called “The Homelessness, Drug Addiction, and Theft Reduction Act”, is backed by 14 of San Diego county’s 18 mayors as well as more than a dozen other elected officials and members of law enforcement across the Golden State. 

On Wednesday, the California Highway Patrol’s Organized Retail Theft Task Force announced it arrested 474 suspects in the first three months of 2024 and recovered 160,000 stolen items valued at nearly $4.2 million.

CHP said this was more than half of all the stolen goods that the task force recovered in all of 2023.

Despite recent data suggesting crime has slightly dropped in certain counties, local businesses still want the measure to pass.

“Crime in general is down by about 2%, however larceny, theft, and drugs are up and they continue to go up,” said San Diego County district attorney Summer Stephan.

Though the coalition was able to gather enough signatures, they still need to be verified before the initiative can officially be placed on the November ballot.

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