California lawmakers and law enforcement officials are calling Gov. Gavin Newsom’s revised budget a slap in the face to voters after he refused to fund an initiative to hold criminals accountable.
Despite a nearly $350 billion revised budget that was buoyed by the state’s AI-driven economy — and allegedly erased structural deficits in the coming years — Newsom refused to commit any new funding for Proposition 36 in a budget reveal Thursday.
The tough-on-crime ballot measure from 2024 created stricter penalties for retail theft, mandated drug and mental health treatment, and created more tools to hold criminals accountable.
The California District Attorneys Association, California State Sheriffs’ Association and Chief Probation Officers of California issued a joint statement slamming Newsom for failing to allocate any new funds.
“Governor Newsom has again turned his back, denying communities across the state the resources they need to enforce the law and save lives,” officials said.
“With their hands tied by a lack of funding, law enforcement, prosecutors, and probation officers cannot fully hold offenders accountable or steer them into the treatment they desperately need.”
Newsom opposed Prop. 36 at the time of its proposal, but it still passed with overwhelming support from California voters. However, the measure did not require dedicated, long-term funding.
The law authorizes felony charges for possession of drugs including fentanyl and for thefts under $950 if the offender has two prior drug or theft convictions. It also created a new category of crime called “treatment-mandated felony” that allows a person to have their drug conviction set aside if they complete rehab.
A one-time state budget allocation of $100 million has failed to move the needle, leading both Republican and Democratic state lawmakers to request funding as high as $600 million annually.
Esa Ehmen-Krause, president of the Chief Probation Officers of California, also ripped Newsom for not adequately funding pretrial programs and Prop. 36.
“The state is increasingly relying on county probation departments to support state courts, improve public safety, oversee rehabilitation, and implement voter-approved Proposition 36, yet the state continues to reduce the very resources needed to carry out that work,” Ehmen-Krause said in a statement.
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“California cannot continue expanding local public safety responsibilities and expect good outcomes without making the investments necessary to support them.”
Newsom deflected criticism on the issue of Prop. 36 funding while answering questions following his budget presentation.
“Prop. 36 still has money from the $100 million a few years ago,” Newsom said.
“It still has the ability to attach billions of billions of dollars of new funding that has flooded the zone in all of these other areas that can be used to address the need,” he added.
“We’ve been talking about this enough and those resources still exist from prior appropriation, which I think says everything you need to know.”
