Three months after voters approved Proposition 36 to reclassify certain petty theft and drug crimes as felonies, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to study its impact on the county budget.
The measure partially reversed 2014’s Proposition 47, which reduced certain low-level felonies to misdemeanors.
Prosecutors can now charge people with a treatment-mandated felony, which would direct them to substance use disorder or mental health treatment in lieu of up to three years in jail or prison.
According to Tuesday’s motion introduced by Supervisor Janice Hahn, Prop 47 directed savings derived from the reduction in the state prison population into the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Fund, which allocated millions of dollars to county services.
“The passage of Proposition 36 is expected to increase the county jail and state prison populations, which will likely reduce the annual fiscal savings from Proposition 47 that are allocated to the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Fund,” the motion reads.
Governor Gavin Newsom’s state budget for Fiscal Year 2025-26 estimated that fiscal savings from Prop 47 will amount to a net savings of $88.3 million, a decrease of $6.5 million from the previous year.
The motion adds that passage of Prop 36 would also create a further reduction of funding to provide services for both criminals and victims of crime.
The board directed the CEO and the Justice Care and Opportunities Department, and departments that have received funding from the California Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Fund, to report back in 60 days with an analysis of services that could be impacted by the reduction in funding from the passage of Prop 36.