California Democratic leadership is facing off against a coalition of law enforcement and business groups in a battle over how to address the rising issue of retail theft in the state. The two sides are considering two different paths to tackle the problem: a ballot initiative that would create harsher penalties for repeat offenders, and a legislative package aimed at going after professional crime rings that orchestrate large-scale thefts. The disagreement stems from the passage of Proposition 47 in 2014, which reduced certain theft and drug possession offenses from felonies to misdemeanors to alleviate jail overcrowding.
Law enforcement officials argue that Proposition 47 has made it more difficult to arrest and punish individuals who shoplift, while researchers have found no evidence linking the proposition to increased violent crime rates. The coalition backing the ballot initiative is pushing for stricter penalties for shoplifting and drug offenses, including making theft of any amount a felony for repeat offenders. On the other hand, Democratic leaders want to avoid the ballot measure and are fast-tracking a legislative package with 14 bills that target organized crime rings and provide funding for drug addiction counselors.
If the tough-on-crime ballot initiative is approved by voters, Democratic leaders plan to void most of the measures in their legislative package, citing potential conflicts between the two efforts. Lawmakers express concerns about the possibility of mass incarceration and overcrowded jails if both paths succeed. The ballot initiative campaign accuses lawmakers of holding their proposals hostage to break up the coalition, while local district attorneys suggest that both efforts could work together by having the ballot measure override the legislative package in case of legal conflicts.
Backers of the ballot initiative remain open to negotiations with Democratic leadership but are firm on their stance of rolling back Proposition 47 as a solution to combat retail theft. Governor Newsom and Democratic leaders have until June 27 to negotiate a resolution to get the initiative off the ballot. Lawmakers are moving forward with delivering the legislative package to Newsom’s desk for signing, despite concerns from moderate Democrats. Assemblymember Rick Zbur, author of one of the retail theft bills, emphasizes the comprehensive nature of the legislative package and asserts that it was not intended to be stacked onto a ballot measure that undermines the existing law being reformed.
