Pot Legalization, Tobacco Tax Among Health Issues On November Ballot
With as many as 18 ballot measures expected to qualify for a vote, Californians will decide several health-related issues including proposals to legalize marijuana for recreational use and raise the state's cigarette tax by $2 per pack.
Los Angeles Times:
California November Ballot Will Have As Many As 18 Measures
California voters this fall will likely wade through the longest list of state propositions since Bill Clinton was president, a sizable batch of proposed laws that is likely to spark a record amount of campaign spending. ... This week marks an unofficial but closely watched deadline for backers of the fall's bumper crop of propositions. Campaigns will submit the final voter signatures gathered for initiatives, and elections officials will then need several weeks to verify those signatures. ... A few with prominent causes or champions will stand out. Tops on that list may be the initiative to fully legalize marijuana, backed by Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, Facebook co-founder Sean Parker and a long list of drug policy reformers. (Myers, 5/16)
The Associated Press:
Bid To Raise California Tobacco Tax Nears November Ballot
A well-financed campaign whose backers include billionaire environmentalist Tom Steyer, medical groups and organized labor has collected enough signatures for a ballot measure to raise California's cigarette tax by $2 per pack, officials said. The Save Lives California coalition scheduled a news conference Monday at the San Diego County Registrar of Voters office to submit the first signatures in a campaign to nearly triple California's cigarette tax to $2.87 a pack. If enough signatures are verified, the measure would appear on an increasingly crowded Nov. 8 ballot. (5/16)