Archive of Ballot Recommendations
Read our Recommendations
This archive contains recommendations for statewide measures. Our recommendations are based on extensive research by our nonpartisan staff and volunteers, who use our positions to guide their evaluation. For unbiased information on the ballot measures, please visit CaVotes.org.
The LWVC is a nonpartisan, grassroots organization that empowers voters and promotes informed participation in government. We do not endorse candidates or political parties.
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Recommendation on Prop 2 (2024)
General Election November 2024 YES on Prop 2: School & Community College Facility Bonds. Prop 2 would supplement local bond funds by authorizing $8.5 billion in state bonds for construction and modernization of K-12 schools and $1.5 billion for community colleges. All children in California deserve school facilities in good repair and equipped to provide…
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Recommendation on Prop 3 (2024)
General Election November 2024 YES on Prop 3: Freedom to Marry. Despite the existence of modern legal safeguards guaranteeing marriage equality, California’s Constitution carries the shameful stain of language declaring that only marriage between a man and a woman will be recognized by the state. Prop 3 would enshrine marriage equality in the California Constitution.…
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Recommendation on Prop 4 (2024)
General Election November 2024 YES on Prop 4: Climate Protection Project Bonds. The bonds for “safe drinking water, wildfire prevention, and protecting communities and natural lands from climate risks” would allow the state to borrow $10 billion for much-needed climate and environmental projects. Prop 4 is vital for mitigating the escalating costs of climate change and safeguarding…
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Recommendation on Prop 5 (2024)
General Election November 2024 YES on Prop 5: Lower Voting Threshold On Local Housing & Infrastructure Bonds. Prop 5 would reduce the voting margin necessary to approve local bonds and taxes for affordable housing, transportation, parks and other public infrastructure, from 66.7% to 55%. The constitutional amendment is essential to eliminate the anti-democratic supermajority…
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Recommendation on Prop 6 (2024)
General Election November 2024 YES on Prop 6: End Slavery In California Act. Prop 6, the End Slavery in California Act, is long overdue and both a moral imperative and practical necessity. Morally, it addresses a profound injustice embedded in the state’s constitution, which permits involuntary servitude as a punishment for crime. This archaic exception…
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Recommendation on Prop 32 (2024)
General Election November 2024 YES on Prop 32: Raises Minimum Wage To $18. California has a high cost of living and our current $16 minimum wage is well below the estimated living wage needed to support a household’s basic needs. Prop 32 would raise the minimum wage for employers that employ 26 or more people…
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Recommendation on Prop 33 (2024)
General Election November 2024 NEUTRAL on Prop 33: Expands Local Authority To Enact Rent Control On Residential Property. The League supports efforts to help resolve California’s housing crisis. We promote solutions aimed at increasing housing production in a sustainable, accessible, and equitable manner. Rent control policies are one strategy to address California’s housing challenges, offer…
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Recommendation on Prop 34 (2024)
General Election November 2024 NO POSITION on Prop 34: Restricts Spending By Health Care Providers Meeting Specified Criteria. When the LWVC has no position relevant to a ballot measure, we offer no analysis. Download Vote with the League Flyer
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Recommendation on Prop 35 (2024)
General Election November 2024 NO on Prop 35: Permanent Funding For Medi-Cal Health Care Services. Medi-Cal provides health services to over 15 million low-income Californians. Prop 35 is a well-meaning but misguided effort to try to provide more and steady funding for Medi-Cal and potentially improve reimbursement rates for medical providers. Prop 35 would change…
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Recommendation on Prop 36 (2024)
General Election November 2024 NO on Prop 36: Increase Penalties For Theft And Drug Trafficking. Prop 36 would erode criminal justice reform in California by reversing key advances aimed at reducing mass incarceration and promoting rehabilitation. It would impose stricter sentencing laws that disproportionately impact people of color and those with low-income, exacerbating existing racial…
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Recommendation on Prop 1 (2024)
Primary Election March 2024 VOTE NO on Prop 1: Mental Health Care and Addiction Treatment Reform & Bonds to Build Places for Treatment and Supportive Housing. Although California has a critical need to resource better mental health and addiction services and to address our crisis of homelessness, the League of Women Voters of California opposes…
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Recommendation on Prop 1 (2022)
Vote YES on Prop 1: Reproductive Freedom. A recent decision by the U.S. Supreme Court held that the U.S. Constitution does not protect the right to abortion. While access to abortion is no longer federally protected and is under attack across the country, we can safeguard access in California. Proposition 1 will amend the California…
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Recommendation on Prop 26 (2022)
NO POSITION on Prop 26: In-Person Sports Betting in Tribal Casinos. When the LWVC has no pre-existing position relevant to a ballot measure, we offer no analysis.
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Recommendation on Prop 27 (2022)
NO POSITION on Prop 27: Online Sports Betting. When the LWVC has no pre-existing position relevant to a ballot measure, we offer no analysis.
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Recommendation on Prop 28 (2022)
NEUTRAL on Prop 28: Funding Arts and Music Education. The League strongly supports a high-quality public education system in California. Because of a variety of voter-supported initiatives which limit and prescribe state and local spending, California does not provide the level of financial support for its schools that the League considers adequate. This proposition would…
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Recommendation on Prop 29 (2022)
NEUTRAL on Prop 29: Kidney Dialysis Clinics Requirements. This measure would require operators of chronic dialysis clinics to have a minimum of one licensed physician, nurse practitioner, or physician’s assistant at a clinic whenever patients are being treated, offer the same level of care to all patients regardless of how payment is being made, and…
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Recommendation on Prop 30 (2022)
NEUTRAL on Prop 30: Income Tax on Millionaires for Electric Cars. Prop 30 would increase the income tax for very wealthy Californians, and use the proceeds on programs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transportation and wildfires in the state. The initiative includes thoughtful proposals for moving to electrify our transportation, including incentives and education,…
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Recommendation on Prop 31 (2022)
YES on Prop 31: Banning Flavored Tobacco Products. In 2020, California passed a law banning the in-person sale of flavored tobacco products, like candy-flavored e-cigarettes and menthol cigarettes, at stores and vending machines. Sellers violating the law would be subject to criminal misdemeanor prosecution. A YES vote on Prop 31 is a vote to keep…
No Propositions for the June 7 Primary Election
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Recommendation on Prop 14 (2020)
Neutral Position While the League of Women Voters of California supports ongoing stem cell research, we are neutral on Prop 14 (Stem Cell Research) because of the funding mechanism used and because of the requirement for a supermajority vote to amend its provisions. Prop 14 would authorize the use of general obligation bonds to continue…
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Recommendation on Prop 15 (2020)
YES on Prop 15: Schools & Communities First. The Schools & Communities First initiative will raise $12 billion every year for California’s schools, essential workers, and local governments. This will come by ensuring that all corporate properties worth more than $3 million pay their fair share of property taxes – while protecting homeowners and renters,…
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Recommendation on Prop 16 (2020)
YES on Prop 16: Opportunity for All. Affirmative action in state hiring, contracting, and education was banned in California by Prop 209 in 1996. Prop 16 will reverse that ban and allow schools and public institutions to take race, ethnicity, color, national origin, and gender into consideration when admitting students to colleges, hiring employees for…
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Recommendation on Prop 17 (2020)
YES on Prop 17: Restore Voting Rights. Restoring voting rights to Californians who have completed their prison term is a matter of justice, equity, and fundamental fairness. Right now, nearly 50,000 people who have been released from prison and are on parole are denied the right to vote – a right that is owed to…
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Recommendation on Prop 18 (2020)
YES on Prop 18: Voting Rights for 17-Year-Olds Seventeen-year-olds who will be 18 by the next general election should be able to vote in primary and special elections. Prop 18 will give them that right. Young people are significantly underrepresented in California’s electorate. Allowing 17-year-olds to vote in primary and special elections will engage young…
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Recommendation on Prop 19 (2020)
Vote NO on Prop 19 – The Home Protection for Seniors, Severely Disabled, Families, and Victims of Wildfire or Natural Disasters Act. Prop 19 exacerbates an already inequitable property tax system – offering tax breaks to people who do not need them. Providing tax breaks to homeowners over 55 who purchase a replacement home, and…
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Recommendation on Prop 20 (2020)
Vote NO on Prop 20: Rollback on Criminal Justice Reforms. Over the past decade, California has made progress in enacting laws that reduce the prison population and create a more effective and equitable public safety system. Prop 20 would roll back many advances in criminal justice reforms and reinstate a “get tough” law enforcement system…
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Recommendation on Prop 21 (2020)
NEUTRAL on Prop 21: Local Governments and Rent Control. The League supports efforts to help resolve California’s housing crisis. We promote solutions aimed at increasing housing production in a sustainable, accessible, and equitable manner. Rent control policies are one strategy to address California’s housing challenges, offer tenant protections, and prevent displacement. Rent control may be…
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Recommendation on Prop 22 (2020)
NO POSITION on Prop 22: Rideshare and Delivery Drivers. When the LWVC has no pre-existing position relevant to a ballot measure, we offer no analysis.
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Recommendation on Prop 23 (2020)
NEUTRAL on Prop 23: Kidney Dialysis Clinics. This measure will require operators of chronic dialysis clinics to have a minimum of one licensed physician at the clinic whenever patients are being treated, offer the same level of care to all patients regardless of how payment is being made, and make reports about dialysis-related infections to…
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Recommendation on Prop 24 (2020)
Vote NO on Prop 24: Amends Consumer Data Privacy. The League of Women Voters supports the protection of consumers’ private data. Prop 24 includes some beneficial elements, but we oppose due to the complexity of a 52-page initiative with impacts and nuances that are difficult for voters to discern and rollbacks to existing protections. Among…
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Recommendation on Prop 25 (2020)
A YES vote on Prop 25 is a vote to replace the money bail system with the use of pretrial risk assessment tools that focus on safety and flight risk. It is estimated that almost 46,000 Californians, a disproportionate number of whom are Black and Latinx, are being held in jail because of their inability…
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Recommendation on Prop 13 (2020)
YES on Prop 13: Bonds for Schools and Colleges Proposition 13 would authorize $15 billion for construction and modernization of school and college facilities in California. It includes $9 billion for preschool and K-12 schools and $6 billion for California’s public higher education system. The funds will be split evenly among the 114 community colleges,…
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Recommendation on Prop 1 (2018)
YES on Prop 1: Veterans and Affordable Housing Bond. California is experiencing a housing crisis. The state’s extreme shortage of affordable housing has life and death consequences, especially for people with low incomes. Housing instability has been linked to public health crises, food insecurity, and developmental problems in children. Prop 1 will build and preserve…
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Recommendation on Prop 2 (2018)
YES on Prop 2: Homeless Housing Bond. A quarter of the nation’s homeless reside in California–over 130,000 people. A significant percentage of our homeless population suffers from mental illness. Prop 2 allows the use of unspent money, originally allocated through a 2004 measure to fund mental health services, to be used to address the problem.…
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Recommendation on Prop 3 (2018)
NO on Prop 3: Water Bond. It is essential that California manage and develop water resources in ways that benefit the environment, and that the environmental focus emphasizes both conservation and use-appropriate high water quality standards. However, this bond is not the way to accomplish those goals. While the League of Women Voters of California…
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Recommendation on Prop 4 (2018)
NO on Prop 4: Children’s Hospital Bond. While the League supports quality healthcare for all Californians, Prop 4 would use $1.5 billion in public, general obligation bond money to support privately-owned children’s hospitals, along with five children’s hospitals in the University of California system. State funds should not be used to support private facilities. This…
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Recommendation on Prop 5 (2018)
NO on Prop 5: Property Tax. Property taxes are the major source of funding for schools and local services. Prop 5 is a costly constitutional amendment that would reduce funds for schools and local services by $1 billion per year. In exchange for that $1 billion a year, Prop 5 would provide special tax benefits…
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Recommendation on Prop 6 (2018)
NO on Prop 6: Gas Tax Repeal. California is in critical need of highway and local street repairs and maintenance, and improvements to mass transit and transportation. Prop 6 would repeal the recently enacted 2017 package of taxes and fees approved by the State Legislature to fund transportation projects, amounting to a loss of $4.7…
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Recommendation on Prop 7 (2018)
NO POSITION on Prop 7: Daylight Saving Time. When the LWVC has no pre-existing position relevant to a ballot measure, we offer no analysis.
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Recommendation on Prop 8 (2018)
NO POSITION on Prop 8: Kidney Dialysis Clinics. When the LWVC has no pre-existing position relevant to a ballot measure, we offer no analysis.
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Recommendation on Prop 10 (2018)
YES on Prop 10: Repeal Costa Hawkins. Multiple strategies are needed to address the significant housing shortages and inequities that exist across California. While this rent control measure offers little systemic progress, and may not result in adding new affordable housing units, it does allow local communities to respond to the housing crisis in ways…
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Recommendation on Prop 11 (2018)
NO POSITION on Prop 11: Ambulance Employee Breaks. When the LWVC has no pre-existing position relevant to a ballot measure, we offer no analysis.
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Recommendation on Prop 12 (2018)
NO POSITION on Prop 12: Farm Animal Cages. When the LWVC has no pre-existing position relevant to a ballot measure, we offer no analysis.
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Recommendation on Prop 68 (2018)
YES on Prop 68: Californians for Clean Water and Safe Parks. This measure would authorize California to issue general obligation bonds, with the money used to finance state and local parks, water conservation measures, water reliability to disadvantaged communities, and flood protection projects. California parks provide open space and recreation, improving health and community well-being.…
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Recommendation on Prop 69 (2018)
YES on Prop 69: Motor Vehicle Fees and Taxes. If passed, this constitutional amendment would ensure that the existing transportation revenues we pay at the pump and when we register our vehicles can ONLY be used for road and transportation improvement projects. This amendment protects these transportation funds by prohibiting the state legislature from using…
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Recommendation on Prop 70 (2018)
NO on Prop 70: Greenhouse Gas Reduction Reserve Fund. This measure would add a requirement that two-thirds of legislators approve the first appropriation of any money collected from the sale by CARB (California Air Resources Board) of cap-and-trade allowances after 2024. At a time that we need efficient and effective investments in climate change solutions,…
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Recommendation on Prop 71 (2018)
YES on Prop 71: Effective Date of Initiatives. Currently, an initiative that is approved takes effect the day after the election unless the measure provides otherwise. Election results are not officially certified until five weeks after the election. While most election results are clear shortly after Election Day, that is not always the case. Prop…
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Recommendation on Prop 72 (2018)
YES on Prop 72: Property taxation. New construction of Rainwater Capture System. This measure would allow an exclusion from additional property taxes for construction or installation of rainwater capture systems. These systems capture, store, and use otherwise wasted rainwater for landscape irrigation and similar uses, saving more conventional water for personal use. With traditional water…
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Recommendation on Prop 51 (2016)
All California’s schoolchildren deserve school facilities in good repair and equipped to provide all students a 21st century education. In a perfect world with adequate funding, we wouldn’t need to borrow to build. However, this is not a perfect world, and our facilities needs are massive and require a large infusion of funding. It has…
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Recommendation on Prop 52 (2016)
NO POSITION on Prop 52: State Fees on Hospitals. Federal Medi-Cal Matching Funds. When the LWVC has no pre-existing position relevant to a ballot measure, we offer no analysis.
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Recommendation on Prop 53 (2016)
NO POSITION on Prop 53: Revenue Bonds. Statewide Voter Approval. When the LWVC has no pre-existing position relevant to a ballot measure, we offer no analysis.
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Recommendation on Prop 54 (2016)
YES on Prop 54: California Legislature Transparency Act. League Analysis Proposition 54 gives voters a stronger voice at the state Capitol through greater transparency. Its three common-sense changes to the California Constitution will change the way business is done in Sacramento, curbing practices that give insiders and special interests the upper hand over ordinary Californians.…
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Recommendation on Prop 55 (2016)
Proposition 55 is key in maintaining economic recovery and growth in California by continuing the current income tax rates on the wealthiest two percent of Californians established by the voters in 2012. That measure, Prop 30, has moved California toward financial stability and adequate funding for education and other services we depend on like health…
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Recommendation on Prop 56 (2016)
NEUTRAL on Prop 56: Cigarette Tax. For background information on this measure, refer to the Legislative Analyst’s Office analysis included in the Official Voter Information Guide. League Analysis: The LWVC board carefully considered Proposition 56 and, recognizing both good and bad aspects of the measure, decided to remain neutral. Prop 56 establishes an increased tax…
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Recommendation on Prop 57 (2016)
This measure restores the authority of judges, not prosecutors, to decide if juveniles as young as 14 should be tried in adult court, a right judges had until 2000. The prosecution may file a motion, but the court decides. Proposition 57 will also reduce the state prison population and costs by allowing earlier parole of…
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Recommendation on Prop 58 (2016)
Proposition 58 repeals the most restrictive parts of Proposition 227, a 1998 initiative that limited the methods California schools can use to teach English to students who are not native English speakers. This measure addresses the inequity of Prop 227 and frees parents and their schools to provide the best educational opportunities for all California…
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Recommendation on Prop 59 (2016)
Eliminating the corrupting influence of money in our democracy is a vital concern. Unfortunately, this vague, poorly drafted ballot measure is not the solution. A constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United may have appeal as a quick fix, but in reality it is a slow, laborious, costly, and potentially unsuccessful strategy. A poorly written amendment…
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Recommendation on Prop 60 (2016)
NO POSITION on Prop 60: Adult Films. Condoms. Health Requirements. Initiative Statute. When the LWVC has no pre-existing position relevant to a ballot measure, we offer no analysis.
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Recommendation on Prop 61 (2016)
NO POSITION on Prop 61: State Prescription Drug Purchases. Pricing Standards. Initiative Statute. When the LWVC has no pre-existing position relevant to a ballot measure, we offer no analysis.
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Recommendation Prop 62 (2016)
Proposition 62 will abolish the death penalty, replacing it with life without possibility of parole. It will ensure time in prison is spent in work, with an increased portion of wages going to restitution to victims’ families. Families deserve restitution, not endless legal appeals, and closure through knowing these worst criminals will never be released.…
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Recommendation on Prop 63 (2016)
The facts are sobering. From 2002 to 2013, 38,576 Californians died from gun violence, including 2,258 children. In the U.S., more than 300 Americans are shot each day, more than 80 of them fatally. Prop 63 helps counter those statistics by strengthening background check systems and ensuring that California law enforcement shares data about dangerous…
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Recommendation on Prop 64 (2016)
NO POSITION on Prop 64: Marijuana Legalization. When the LWVC has no pre-existing position relevant to a ballot measure, we offer no analysis.
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Recommendation on Prop 65 (2016)
Don’t be confused by this deceptive measure—vote NO. Large players in the plastic bag industry spent millions to put this disingenuous initiative on the ballot, creating a distraction that could thwart California’s efforts to rein in plastic bag waste and litter. The plastic bag industry wants to use this measure to damage the hard-won agreement…
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Recommendation on Prop 66 (2016)
This poorly written measure would greatly increase California’s risk of executing an innocent person by shortening the time for appeals and limiting the prisoner’s ability to present new evidence of their innocence. Raising significant constitutional issues, this could cause more delays, increase taxpayers’ costs, and add layers of bureaucracy. It is estimated the state would…
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Recommendation on Prop 67 (2016)
The League urges a YES vote on Proposition 67 to retain California’s plastic bag ban. The question on a referendum is not intuitive; you are being asked if you want to retain the new law. Vote YES to keep the 2014 statewide law prohibiting single-use carryout bags. These plastic film bags pollute our oceans, pose…
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Recommendation on Prop 50 (2016)
Proposition 50 would give the Legislature clear authority to discipline Senators or Assembly Members by suspending them without pay. Lawmakers should be able to hold their own colleagues accountable if they breach the public’s trust. This commonsense measure was placed on the ballot with strong bipartisan support.
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Recommendation on Prop 1 (2014)
NEUTRAL on Prop 1: Water Bond The LWVC could enthusiastically support many of the projects funded by Prop 1, such as the cleanup and prevention of polluted groundwater; drinking and wastewater treatment projects; and water recycling, rainwater capture, conservation, and water-use efficiencies that will help reduce demand on water resources over the long term. However,…
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Recommendation on Prop 2 (2014)
YES on Prop 2: Rainy Day Fund. State Budget Reserves. The LWVC supports Prop 2 because it takes an important step toward fiscal discipline in our state government. It requires the state to make contributions to its rainy day reserve fund and pay down debts and liabilities when times are good, with increased contributions in…
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Recommendation on Prop 45 (2014)
NO POSITION on Prop 45: Healthcare Insurance. Rate Changes. When the LWVC has no pre-existing position relevant to a ballot measure, we offer no analysis.
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Recommendation on Prop 46 (2014)
NO POSITION on Prop 46: Drug and Alcohol Testing of Doctors. Medical Negligence Lawsuits. When the LWVC has no pre-existing position relevant to a ballot measure, we offer no analysis.
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Recommendation on Prop 47 (2014)
YES on Prop 47: Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act. Prop 47 will ensure that prison spending is focused on violent and serious offenses and will maximize alternatives for non-serious, nonviolent crime. The savings generated will be invested in prevention and support programs in K-12 schools, victim services, and mental health and drug treatment. Prop 47…
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Recommendation on Prop 48 (2014)
NO POSITION on Prop 48: Referendum on Indian Gaming Compacts. When the LWVC has no pre-existing position relevant to a ballot measure, we offer no analysis.
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