Assembly Constitutional Amendment 13 passed the Senate Elections and Constitutional Amendments Committee Monday, September 11 with amendments to make clear it does not reverse or invalidate the provisions of Proposition 13 of 1978—a claim opponents of ACA 13 have falsely alleged in an attempt to forestall its passage.
ACA 13 must pass both houses of the State Legislature by a two-thirds super majority margin. It passed the Assembly 57-19 on September 6. It must now clear the State Senate and return to the Assembly for concurrence in the Senate amendments before the State Legislature adjourns for its Interim Recess on September 14. If passed by the Legislature, ACA 13 will be placed on the March 5, 2024 statewide ballot for consideration by voters.
CSDA strongly supports ACA 13, along with Common Cause, the League of Women Voters, Cal Cities, the California State Association of Counties, and more. Dozens of independent special districts have already responded to CSDA’s call to Action, but more help is needed.
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Local Control and Scarce Resources for Essential Local Services are in Jeopardy
ACA 13 stands out as a top priority to protect the fiscal and operational stability of public agencies. For example, if passed into law, ACA 13 would require CSDA-opposed Initiative #1935 to pass by the same two-thirds threshold it looks to impose on future generations of voters.
Initiative #1935, would have severe impacts on the ability of special districts to serve their communities. Over 100 special districts have passed resolutions in opposition to this initiative eligible for the November 2024 ballot because it would retroactively invalidate the actions of local electorates and invite costly lawsuits taxpayers would be forced to defend.
Your Voice is Making an Impact and Special Districts are Making a Difference
Every vote counts on this two-thirds measure and every letter of support and call from special district local leaders will make a difference. The author of ACA 13, Assembly Member Chris Ward, cited the special districts and other local leaders calling for its important protections of local voters, local control, and local services in his closing remarks before the September 6 Assembly Floor vote.
Additional Background
ACA 13 would retain the majority vote requirement for passage of state and local initiatives. ACA 13 will require proposed initiatives that seek to increase vote thresholds on future state and local measures to pass with that same proportional higher vote threshold. ACA 13 would also preserve the right of local agencies to place advisory questions on the ballot to ask voters their opinion on issues.
If ACA 13 is approved by the requisite margins in both houses of the California Legislature, California voters would be asked in March 2024 to decide whether an initiative constitutional amendment containing provisions that increase vote thresholds should be required to attain the same proportion of votes in favor of the amendment that the proposed increased vote thresholds would demand.
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i.e., if an initiative constitutional amendment includes a provision that would impose a supermajority (e.g., three-fifths, two-thirds, four-fifths, etc.) voter approval threshold, then that initiative would be required to gain the approval of the same super majority (three-fifths, two-thirds, four-fifths, etc.; whatever threshold the initiative proposes) of California voters in order to pass
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if the initiative constitutional amendment includes provisions that impose a supermajority vote threshold and fails to gain the corresponding supermajority of voters in support of the underlying amendment, the initiative constitutional amendment would not be considered approved, thereby failing in its entirety
As noted above, opponents of ACA 13 have alleged it would make changes to Proposition 13, passed by voters in 1978 and still in effect. ACA 13 does not touch Prop 13, is not retroactive, and will not do anything to change or undo Prop 13. The amendments taken in the Senate Elections and Constitutional Amendments Committee make this clear.
Because ACA 13 protects the democratic process in local communities by ensuring that a simple majority of statewide voters cannot restrict the will of a supermajority of voters in a local community, CSDA adopted its support position and provided the author's office with a letter of support.
If you have questions or need support in reaching out to your State Senator, please email advocacy@csda.net.
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