VoterCurrent

California·Election: 2014-11-04

Criminal Sentences. Misdemeanor Penalties. Initiative Statute.

Requires misdemeanor sentences rather than felony charges for certain drug possession offenses and property crimes (petty theft, receiving stolen property, forging/writing bad checks) when the amount involved is $950 or less. Felony sentencing remains available for defendants with prior convictions for serious crimes. Mandates re-sentencing for people currently serving felony sentences for these offenses, unless a court finds unreasonable public safety risk. Savings fund mental health programs, substance abuse treatment, K–12 schools, and crime victim services.

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Linked measures

  • This measure is partially rolled back by Prop 36 (2024).

    California · 2024-11-05

Claims & Sourced Record

1 claim · 3 metrics

Each claim states an intended outcome of the measure. Metrics are appended over time and never replaced — every entry keeps its original date and citation.

Criminal JusticeClaim 1 of 1

Proposition 47 will reduce state and county incarceration costs for low-level, nonviolent drug and property offenses, redirecting the savings into K–12 schools, mental health and substance abuse treatment, and crime victim services.

Source: California Secretary of State
Sourced record — append-only3 entries · oldest first
  1. 2015-08-01

    7,700 fewer people in state prison (net decline since Nov. 2014)

    Source: Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) · retrieved 2026-08-28

  2. 2024-06-30

    94,773,000 USD — net state savings, FY2023-24 (DOF calculation; transferred to SNSF in FY2024-25)

    Source: Legislative Analyst's Office (LAO) · retrieved 2026-09-01

  3. 2025-06-30

    91,499,241 USD — net state savings, FY2024-25 (DOF calculation)

    Source: Legislative Analyst's Office (LAO) · retrieved 2026-09-01

Sources