New Initiative To Splits California Into 3 States

BEVERLY HILLS, CA – The state Attorney General's Office received an initiative Friday that proposes splitting California into three states: Northern, Central, and Southern.

Central California, which would consist of Los Angeles, Ventura, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Monterey and San Benito counties, would be called California, or a name to be chosen by its residents.

Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, Imperial, Kern, Kings, Fresno, Inyo, Madera and Mono counties would be called Southern California, or a name to be chosen by its residents. Although Tulare County is part of the area proposed for the state of Southern California, it's not mentioned in the initiative. Initiative proponents have the right to revise their initiatives before signature-gathering begins.

The remaining 40 counties would be part of the state of Northern California or a name chosen by its residents.

In the initiative's statement of findings, author Tim Draper wrote "California is the nation's third largest state by geography, over two times larger than the average of the 50 states, with enormous and diverse economies, including agriculture, energy, technology and entertainment.

As a consequence of these and other socioeconomic factors, political representation of California's diverse population and economies has rendered the state nearly ungovernable. Additionally, vast parts of California are poorly served by a representative government dominated by a large number of elected representatives from a small part of our state, both geographically and economically.

The citizens of the whole state would be better served by three smaller state governments while preserving the historical boundaries of the various counties, cities and towns."

Draper, a Menlo Park-based billionaire venture capitalist, was the author of a 2014 initiative to divide California into six states that failed to receive enough signatures to qualify for the ballot.

The initiative to split California into three states was filed one day after the filing of an initiative calling for a constitutional convention to propose a series of amendments to the U.S. Constitution, including creating a way for states to secede.

However, a co-chair of the effort to oppose a 2014 initiative to split California into six states said Sunday a proposal to divide it into three states would have unknown costs.

"The state's higher education system, park system, retirement system, prisons and many other functions of state government would have to be unwound at a cost of who knows what," Steven Maviglio told City News Service.

Draper said, "The established monopoly and all of those who are feeding off it will oppose this measure. Those of us who have to live under the thumb of this failed government are ready to start fresh."

A report on the financial impact of the initiative will be prepared by the Department of Finance and the Legislative Analyst's Office before the state Attorney General's Office issues the title and summary for the measure which allows signature-gathering to begin.

The Attorney General's Office typically issues an official circulation title and summary 65 days after the submission of the initiative.

The report on the fiscal impact for the 2014 initiative did not deal with potential costs of the split.

Draper submitted the new initiative to the state Attorney General's Office Friday.

"Three states will get us better infrastructure, better education and lower taxes," Draper wrote on his Facebook page. "States will be more accountable to us and can cooperate and compete for citizens."

Said Maviglio: "There is no evidence that government in smaller states like Rhode Island or Delaware (is) more responsive or effective than those in larger states."

The "Six Californias" initiative failed to receive enough signatures to qualify for the ballot, part of a string of unsuccessful proposals to split the state dating back to the mid-19th century.

Maviglio called the specific division of counties in the new initiative "more illogical than 'Six Californias."

"It lumps in liberal San Francisco with mountain communities in the north, the state's agricultural breadbasket of the Central Valley with coastal communities along San Diego and the suburbs of Orange County and urban Los Angeles with Monterey," Maviglio said.

Division of California into three states would require congressional approval.

Maviglio said he plans to file paperwork this week to reactivate the One California committee that opposed the Six Californias initiative. (Get Patch real-time email alerts for the latest news from your California neighborhood. And iPhone users: Check out Patch's new app. Also, be sure to follow your local Patch on Facebook!)

City News Service and Patch Staffer Emily Holland contributed to this report

Image via Shutterstock