By Mary O’KEEFE

Out of the 17 propositions placed on the Nov. 8 ballot 12 were passed and five were rejected. The propositions were complicated with convincing pro and con arguments that made the decision-making process even more difficult.

For the recent election, CVW interviewed a voter who understood why he was voting to place people he trusted in the offices of Assembly and Senate but wondered why it was up to him and other California voters to make incredibly difficult legal decisions via the propositions.

It is not easy to place an initiative on the ballot but more and more people are learning how to work the process and are getting more propositions into the hands of voters.

The steps include writing a proposed draft and submitting that initial draft for review by the Office of the Attorney General. Once approved as an active measure, those proposing the initiatives must get signatures of registered voters. The signatures are turned into county election officials and, if verified, will then move to the Secretary of State. There it is either qualified for the ballot or failed. The qualified are then put onto the ballot and voters either approve or deny what is proposed.

There is a $2,000 filing fee that is refunded if the measure qualifies for an election ballot. The Attorney General is responsible for giving the initiative a title and summary. The California Legislative Analyst’s Office submits a report on estimated fiscal effects from the proposition.

The California State Legislature can place measures, or initiatives, on the ballot either via the petition signed by registered voters or directly via the Legislature.

In the coming weeks CVW will look at the most recent propositions that were passed on Nov. 8, and some that were approved in the past, to see how they will affect and have affected our local area.

  Mary Okeefe