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Secretary of State Debra Bowen Assigns Number to New November Ballot Measure; Invites Ballot Arguments

SACRAMENTO - Following action by the Legislature and the Governor last night creating a new water bond measure for the November 4 General Election ballot, Secretary of State Debra Bowen today invited interested Californians to submit arguments to be considered for inclusion in a second voter information guide. The new water bond measure is Proposition 1.

Voter guides, also known as ballot pamphlets, are mailed to every voting household in California and posted on the Secretary of State’s website. The full text and nonpartisan analysis of propositions are also in the voter guides.

The statutory deadline for placing legislative and initiative measures on the ballot was June 26. However, the Legislature and the Governor chose to waive laws and place Proposition 1 on the ballot after the deadline had passed, triggering the need for a second voter guide. When creating Proposition 1 the Legislature and the Governor removed another water bond measure, Proposition 43, from the November 4 ballot.

The new proposition is listed below, along with the Legislative Counsel's digest.

Proposition 1

Water Quality, Supply, and Infrastructure Improvement Act of 2014. (Chapter 188, 2014). (1) Existing law, the Safe, Clean, and Reliable Drinking Water Supply Act of 2012, if approved by the voters, would authorize the issuance of bonds in the amount of $11,140,000,000 pursuant to the State General Obligation Bond Law to finance a safe drinking water and water supply reliability program. Existing law provides for the submission of the bond act to the voters at the November 4, 2014, statewide general election. This bill would repeal these provisions. (2) Under existing law, various measures have been approved by the voters to provide funds for water supply and protection facilities and programs. Existing law, the Safe Drinking Water, Water Quality and Supply, Flood Control, River and Coastal Protection Bond Act of 2006, an initiative measure approved by the voters as Proposition 84 at the November 7, 2006, statewide general election, authorizes the issuance of bonds in the amount of $5,388,000,000 for the purposes of financing safe drinking water, water quality and supply, flood control, natural resource protection, and park improvements. Existing law, the Disaster Preparedness and Flood Prevention Bond Act of 2006, approved by the voters as Proposition 1E at the November 7, 2006, general statewide election, authorizes the issuance of bonds in the amount of $4,090,000,000 for the purposes of financing disaster preparedness and flood prevention projects. Existing law, the Water Security, Clean Drinking Water, Coastal and Beach Protection Act of 2002, an initiative measure approved by the voters as Proposition 50 at the November 5, 2002, statewide general election, authorizes, for the purposes of financing a safe drinking water, water quality, and water reliability program, the issuance of bonds in the amount of $3,440,000,000. Existing law, the Costa-Machado Water Act of 2000, approved by the voters as Proposition 13 at the March 7, 2000, statewide primary election, authorizes the issuance of general obligation bonds in the amount of $1,970,000,000 for the purposes of financing a safe drinking water, clean water, watershed protection, and flood protection program. Existing law, the Safe, Clean, Reliable Water Supply Act, approved by the voters as Proposition 204 at the November 5, 1996, statewide general election, authorizes the issuance of general obligation bonds in the amount of $995,000,000 for the purposes of financing a safe, clean, reliable water supply program. Existing law, the Water Conservation and Water Quality Bond Law of 1986, approved by the voters as Proposition 44 at the June 3, 1986, statewide primary election, authorizes the issuance of general obligation bonds in the amount of $150,000,000 for the purposes of financing a water conservation and water quality program. This bill would enact the Water Quality, Supply, and Infrastructure Improvement Act of 2014, which, if approved by the voters, would authorize the issuance of bonds in the amount of $7,120,000,000 pursuant to the State General Obligation Bond Law to finance a water quality, supply, and infrastructure improvement program. This bill, upon voter approval, would reallocate $425,000,000 of the unissued bonds authorized for the purposes of Propositions 1E, 13, 44, 50, 84, and 204 to finance the purposes of a water quality, supply, and infrastructure improvement program. This bill would provide for the submission of these provisions to the voters at the November 4, 2014, statewide general election. (3) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

People may submit arguments for or against the measure. Arguments selected for the supplemental voter guide will be on public display between August 23 and September 12. If multiple arguments are submitted for one proposition, state law gives first priority to arguments written by legislators in the case of legislative measures, and first priority to arguments written by proponents of an initiative or referendum in such cases. Subsequent priority for all measures goes to bona fide citizen associations and then to individuals. No more than three signers are allowed to appear on an argument or rebuttal to an argument.

Ballot arguments cannot exceed 500 words and rebuttals to ballot arguments cannot exceed 250 words. All submissions should be typed and double-spaced. Arguments may be hand-delivered to the Secretary of State’s Elections Division at 1500 11th Street, 5th Floor, Sacramento, California 95814; faxed to (916) 653-3214; or emailed to VIGarguments@sos.ca.gov. If faxed or emailed, the original documents must be received within 72 hours.

The deadline to submit ballot arguments is August 19 by 2:00 p.m. The deadline to submit rebuttals to the ballot arguments is August 22 by 5:00 p.m.

For more election deadlines and information on ballot measures, go to www.sos.ca.gov/elections/statewide-elections/2014-general.

To view past state voter guides, go to www.sos.ca.gov/elections/ballot-measures/voter-information-guides.htm.

Keep up with the latest California election news and trivia by following @CASOSvote on Twitter.

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