AP16:009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 7, 2016
CONTACT: Sam Mahood
(916) 653-6575
Proposed Initiative Enters Circulation
Minimum Wage. Increases and Future Adjustments. Paid Sick Leave. Initiative Statute.
SACRAMENTO – Secretary of State Alex Padilla announced the proponents of a new initiative were cleared to begin collecting petition signatures today.
The Attorney General prepares the legal title and summary that is required to appear on initiative petitions. When the official language is complete, the Attorney General forwards it to the proponent and to the Secretary of State, and the initiative may be circulated for signatures. The Secretary of State then provides calendar deadlines to the proponent and to county elections officials. The Attorney General’s official title and summary for the measure is as follows:
MINIMUM WAGE. INCREASES AND FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS. PAID SICK LEAVE. INITIATIVE STATUTE. Annually increases minimum wage paid by employers with 26 or more employees until it reaches $15.00 per hour on July 1, 2020. For employers with 25 or fewer employees, annually increases minimum wage until it reaches $15.00 per hour on July 1, 2021. Thereafter, adjusts minimum wage annually based on prior year’s rate of inflation, using California Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers. Increases minimum amount of annual paid sick leave employees can earn and may use from three to six days. Effective January 1, 2018, applies minimum sick leave provisions to in-home supportive services providers. Summary of estimate by Legislative Analyst and Director of Finance of fiscal impact on state and local government: Change in annual state and local tax revenues potentially ranging from a loss of hundreds of millions of dollars to a gain of over $1 billion. Changes in state revenues would affect required state budget reserves, debt payments, and funding for schools and community colleges. Net increase in state and local government spending totaling billions of dollars per year. Cost increases, primarily for government employees and home care providers, would be offset in part by savings from lower enrollment in health and social services programs. (15-0105.)
The Secretary of State’s tracking number for this measure is 1764 and the Attorney General’s tracking number is 15-0105.
The proponents of the measure, Bruce Michael Boyer and Shonda Roberts, must collect the signatures of 365,880 registered voters (five percent of the total votes cast for Governor in the November 2014 general election) in order to qualify it for the November 2016 ballot. The proponents have 180 days to circulate petitions for the measure, meaning the signatures must be submitted to county elections officials by July 5, 2016. The proponents can be reached c/o Jon Youngdahl at (213) 368-7400.
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