A California ballot box. (Photo illustration, Hafakot, via Shutterstock)The Public Policy Institute of California released a survey Wednesday night that, in addition to its examination of the U.S. Senate and presidential races, reported on the level of support for key ballot measures. The propositions require simple majorities to pass.
Participants in a panel discussion of Proposition 62 and 66. Attorney Nancy Haydt, right; Michele Hanisee of the L.A. County Deputy District Attorneys Association, center; and Anne Marie Schubert, Sacramento County district attorney. (Photo: Scott Duncan/Capitol Weekly)It was a wonkish wonderland. Capital Public Radio and Capitol Weekly combined forces Thursday to stage the first “California Votes” series of panel discussions on six of the most controversial ballot measures voters will face on November 8.
Marijuana plant. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.If California legalizes recreational marijuana, the state should develop a single highly regulated marijuana market—for medical and recreational uses. This is among the key findings of a report released today by the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC). It analyzes the regulatory approaches taken by Washington and Colorado — the first two states to legalize recreational marijuana.
A view of the main floor at the state Democratic Party convention in San Jose. (Photo: Alvin Chen/Capitol Weekly)First, take 3,000 political junkies, mix in a few dozen ambitious politicians, stir thoroughly. Let simmer for three days and — Whee! — you have California’s Democratic Party Convention. It was an earnest carnival reflecting what makes California politics so much fun.
California presented in the colors of the state's official flag. (Photo: Savelyev, Shutterstock)It was, as always, a mixture of hope and disappointment, deals made and unmade, the bizarre and the mundane. For the Capitol community, 2015 was also a year of anticipation. Initiative creators were busy in 2015. The latest available figures tell us that 63 initiatives and referenda have been cleared for circulation by the Secretary of State’s office. Not all of them will make it to the Nov. 8 ballot, but four have already, including a proposal to overturn the state’s ban on plastic bags.
A marijuana plant at an indoor farm. (Photo: Syd Cinema, via Shutterstock)In late October, the California and Hawaii chapters of the NAACP gathered for a convention in Los Angeles to discuss issues facing the African-American community. Among the bevy of politicians and suits, one attend stood out: Calvin Broadus Jr., better known as rapper Snoop Dogg, famous for singing “Smoke weed every day.”
The Marijuana Policy Project, a national group that seeks to legalize recreational marijuana use, says it intends to put the issue before California voters on the 2016 general election ballot. The group’s decision to file a committee with California Secretary of State Debra Bowen on Wednesday means it may start raising funds to help finance signature gathering and qualify the measure in California.
A dispensary's sign on Ventura Boulevard in the San Fernando Valley. (Photo: Laurie Avocado)Amid a last-minute flurry of hostile amendments and despite backing from some in law enforcement and the cannabis industry, an attempt to set up the state’s first Bureau of Medical Marijuana has been defeated in the Assembly. The action by the Assembly Appropriations Committee followed intense negotiations between lawmakers, marijuana advocates and law enforcement.
A dispensary's sign on Ventura Boulevard in the San Fernando Valley. (Photo: Laurie Avocado)An unlikely relationship is forming between medical marijuana advocates and local peace officers. Traditionally, they have been in conflict,, but they are coming together to resolve one logistical aspect of the unregulated cannabis industry in California that deals with patient confiscation rights and evidence holding.
Marijuana plant. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.The field of marijuana initiatives for California’s November ballot has been cut in half in less than two weeks, leaving proponents of the two remaining measures in a narrower race for money and momentum while other drug advocates say the next presidential election in 2016 offers a greater chance for success. (Photo: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service)