Assemblyman Mike Gatto Presents Constitutional Amendment To Streamline the Initiative Process

Assemblyman Mike Gatto (D- Los Angeles) announced Friday that he will be presenting his Assembly Constitutional Amendment (ACA) 12 for a vote of the full Assembly.

The measure, part of the Assemblyman’s initiative-reform package introduced in 2011, is a common-sense reform that would create a mechanism to correct potential drafting errors in a proponents’ initiative, after the point in which they have qualified for the ballot.  Currently, no corrections may be made after qualification without restarting the entire process over again, resulting in millions of dollars in extra costs for both proponents and taxpayers. 

In the past, several initiatives have made it to the ballot with grave substantive or technical errors, including “Jessica’s Law,” which was passed by voters in 2006, but is now difficult to enforce, because of errors in the language.  Although the passage of this measure was important for the protection of children, it has been limited in its application due to unanticipated obstacles. 

“I knew it was time to bring ACA 12 forward when I read that Governor Brown was forced to re-file an initiative due to a typo that transposed two numbers.  I introduced my measure to deal with just this sort of situation,” says Gatto, “I was also encouraged by comments made by Jon Coupal, President of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, where he said he was ‘sympathetic about Brown’s mistake.’  It is my sincere hope to work with groups on both sides of the political divide to bring about this simple, but sorely needed change to our state’s initiative process,” said Gatto.

ACA 12 would allow the legislature to propose changes to an initiative once it has qualified for the ballot.  Any corrections or changes would have to be agreed to by the proponents of the initiative, keeping them in total control of their measure. 

ACA 12 requires a bipartisan two-thirds vote of both legislative houses to appear on the ballot for voter ratification.   “I encourage my colleagues, regardless of party affiliation, to vote for this measure.  Let’s allow California voters to improve their initiative process,” said Gatto.

Mike Gatto is the Assistant Speaker Pro Tempore of the California State Assembly.  He represents the cities of Burbank, Glendale, and parts of Los Angeles, including Atwater Village, Franklin Hills, Los Feliz, North Hollywood, Silver Lake, Toluca Lake, Valley Glen, and Van Nuys.