CALPIRG Recommends Yes on 54, 59, and 67

CALPIRG has officially endorsed three of the statewide ballot measures: Prop 54 to increase legislative transparency, Prop 59 to Overturn Citizens United, and Prop 67 to Protect the Statewide Plastic Bag Ban. 

Yes on Prop 54: Increases transparency in the legislature

The California legislature does the work of the people, and their hearings and votes should be accessible to anyone who wants to follow their process. Unfortunately, that’s not always possible, especially at the end of the legislative session, when bills can be amended mere hours before the final vote. Last minute backroom deals are more likely to benefit corporate special interests than the public. Prop 54 would require all legislative hearings to be available to watch online, and allow personal recordings of the legislative process. Most significantly Prop 54 requires that the language of all bills be posted online for 72 hours before their final vote in each house. These simple sunshine measures should result in better public policy and we encourage a yes vote on Prop 54. 

Yes on Prop 59: Instructs our elected officials to overturn Citizens United

Extremely wealthy and corporate interests in our political system have far too much influence over who runs for and wins office. For example, just 10 mega-donors had given more than one billion dollars to super PACs by the end of August 2016. Our elections don’t have to be funded this way. But to change them, we must overturn a series of wrongheaded Supreme Court decisions that have allowed unchecked big money to flow into political campaigns. Prop 59 instructs our elected officials to support an amendment to the constitution to overturn Citizens United. The path to a constitutional amendment isn’t easy, but we can be sure our elected officials won’t act unless the people are demanding it. Help send a loud and clear message that the voters of California want big money out of politics by voting Yes on Prop 59.

Yes on Prop 67: Protects California’s Plastic Bag Ban

In 2014 the California legislature passed a law to get rid of wasteful, single use plastic grocery bags, with broad support from public interest groups including CALPIRG. The Legislative Analyst’s Office estimates that 15 billion single-use plastic bags are given out to Californians each year. Far too many end up as litter on our streets and neighborhoods, or wash into the ocean where they put marine life at risk. Unfortunately, now out-of-state plastic companies are trying to overturn the new state law. They funded signature gatherers to put Prop 67 on the ballot, hoping to confuse enough voters to vote to overturn the statewide ban. Don’t be fooled. Protect California’s statewide plastic bag ban by voting Yes on Prop 67.

More non-partisan information about the candidates and the issues on your ballot can be found here: http://votersedge.org/ca

Paid for by the California Public Interest Research Group, Inc.