Democratic Party urgently pushes SB 1381 to save Prop47, Li Shaomin: Please urgently reject

On the night of June 30, Governor Newsom and Democratic leaders announced the SB 1381 voting measure to replace Proposition 47, emphasizing their opposition to restarting the war on drugs. Community leader Li Shaomin called this move an attempt to confuse the public, with the aim of protecting Proposition 47 from amendments.

Recently, a set of 14 public safety bills proposed by Governor Newsom and Democratic leaders in California were withdrawn due to lack of sufficient support. These bills included provisions that if the “Reduced Penalties for Misdemeanor Crimes” proposition passes in the November referendum, all 14 bills would become invalid. Li Shaomin referred to these clauses as “poison pill provisions.”

Following the failure of the poison pill provisions, Governor Newsom and Democratic leaders hastily introduced their own alternative to Proposition 47, the SB 1381 voting measure, late on Sunday night. July 3 is the deadline for this measure to be included on the November ballot, giving California legislators just a few days to consider its inclusion in the official voter guide.

It is reported that California legislators will convene a special joint assembly of both houses on Wednesday, July 3, at 7 p.m. to vote on the SB 1381 proposal.

Li Shaomin stated that with insufficient support, the Democratic poison pill provisions have been withdrawn. However, they have introduced a new strategy by presenting the SB 1381 proposal as an alternative to Proposition 47, aiming to mislead voters and undermine the “Reduced Penalties for Misdemeanor Crimes” proposition.

Li Shaomin emphasized that the SB 1381 proposal fundamentally fails to address the serious issues brought about by Proposition 47. The proposal does not impose harsher penalties on large-scale fentanyl trafficking or gun-toting drug dealers, lacks mandatory rehab provisions, and provides no assistance to addicts or homeless individuals.

He pointed out that the proposal stipulates that habitual thieves must be convicted three times within three years to be charged with a felony, and that thefts below $50 are not considered crimes. This weakened version, where $950 is the threshold for a felony, is nearly impossible to enforce within the three-year limit.

He urged everyone to send emails to the following members of the assembly and senate with the subject line “Please Vote NO on SB 1381.”

Assembly members:

[email protected]

Senators:

[email protected]

According to Governor Newsom’s website, the SB 1381 proposal aims to replace Proposition 47 and includes provisions such as targeting repeat thieves convicted three times within three years, allowing law enforcement to consolidate theft amounts in multiple cases for felony prosecution, harsh penalties for those intentionally selling fentanyl-laced drugs, establishing state-wide fentanyl disclosure requirements to facilitate prosecuting fentanyl traffickers for murder, and increasing rehab resources.

Newsom claimed in a statement that this measure represents a “balanced approach to combatting crime and protecting our communities without reverting to the ineffective and costly policies of the past.”

According to a report in the San Francisco Chronicle on July 1, 2024, the SB 1381 voting measure requires the “special election” to be merged with the main election on November 5, thus minimizing the impact of this “special election” on voters, with SB 1381 appearing on the regular ballot.

The report further stated, “In fact, they are so desperate to prevent this measure (Reduced Penalties for Misdemeanor Crimes) from succeeding that they are willing to subvert and distort the procedures they claim to hold most sacred – democracy – to achieve their goals.” Governor Newsom and Democratic legislative leaders’ ultimate goal is clear: they do not want any significant reforms to Proposition 47. Studies show that when voters are confused about a ballot measure, they are more likely to vote against it.