The November general election is the third time Californians went to the polls in 2008 to vote on statewide ballot propositions. On February 5, in addition to voting on presidential contenders in the Republican and Democratic party primaries, voters considered four referenda about the tribal gaming compacts and three unsuccessful initatives, including another contender in the long-running term limits issue which began in 1990. On June 3, eminent domain was on the ballot, with Prop 98 losing in a landslide and Prop 99 coasting to a very comfortable victory.
Five men who are on the list of Forbes 400 richest Americans were the primary sponsors of five of the twelve propositions on the November ballot:
Only one of the five ballot propositions that was primarily sponsored by a billionaire passed--Proposition 9.
| Title
| Subject
| Description
| Status
|
| Drinking Water Bond Act | Bonds | $6,835,000,000 ($6.835 billion) in bonds for water projects | 5/12/08
|
| College Affordability Act | Education | Freeze mandatory fees paid by undergraduates for attending state universities for 5 years | 6/09/08
|
| Quality Teacher Recruitment & Retention Act | Education | Prohibit school districts from paying any employee a salary higher than that paid to the highest-paid classroom teacher. | 6/16/08
|
| Protect Marriage | Marriage | Defines marriage as between one man and one woman | 5/27/08
|
| Eminent Domain Protection | Eminent domain | Restricts the use of eminent domain | In circulation
|
| Water Storage & Reliability | Bond issue | $11,690,000,000 ($11.69 billion) bond issue for water projects | approved for circulation
|
| Human Embryo Research | Stem cells | Bans "destructive human embryo research" | approved for circulation
|
| Human Cloning Ban | Stem cells | Bans human cloning | Approved for circulation
|
| Abortion restrictions | Abortion | Ban on abortions at viability | Approved for circulation
|
| Fair Districts Act | Election reform | State legislative district boundary-drawing reforms | failed
|
| Healthcare for Veterans | Health care | Should U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs fully fund health care for vets? | failed
|
| Health Security | Health care | Establishes a California Health Security Plan | failed
|
| Voter Restoration Act | Election reform | State legislative district boundary-drawing reforms | failed
|
| Prisoner Rehabilitation | Law enforcement | Allows inmates more access to educational, treatment and visitation programs | failed
|
| Dietary Supplement Expense | Health/Medical | Medical expense deduction on state income tax for dietary supplements and special foods. | failed
|
| Repeals marijuana penalties | Marijuana | Decriminalizes marijuana | failed
|
| Tangible Ballots | Election Reform | Votes on a direct-recording electronic device must result in a tangible ballot | failed
|
| Prohibits sterilization | Animal rights | Forbids sterilization of animals or humans | failed
|
| Domestic Partnerships | Marriage | Only marriage between one man and one woman is recognized | failed
|
| Property Ownership | Property rights | Forbids local governments from denying land ownership | failed
|
| Animals are Property | Animal rights | Defines animals as property | failed
|
| Prohibition of Identification Devices | Animal rights | Prohibits placing identification devices under animal or human skin | failed
|
| Animal license fees | Animal rights | Forbids local governments from charging more than $50 for an animal license | failed
|
| Stray and relinguished animals | Animal rights | Establishes statewide standards for animal euthansia at shelters | failed
|
| Right to Health | Health care | Declares that health is a fundamental constitutional right | failed
|
| Health insurance | Health care | Health insurance for children | withdrawn
|
| Taxpayer Protection Act | Campaign Finance | Would prohibit taxpayer-funded lobbying | withdrawn
|
| Political Party Nomination | Campaigns & Elections | Select presidential electors by proportional plurality vote if other states do, too | failed
|
| Corporate Crimes | Business regulation | Require business execs to report corporate crimes in writing | failed
|
| Electoral College Reform | Election Reform | Requires political parties to nominate a presidential elector from each congressional district and two additional statewide electors | failed
|
| National Popular Vote Act | Election reform | Presidential election would be based on popular vote | failed
|
| Healthy Californians Act | Health care | Would add "and affordable health care" to the bill of rights | failed
|
| Class Action Reform Act | Judicial reform | Reform class action regulations | failed
|
| Non-Profit Plaintiffs Act | Judicial reform | Allow certain non-profits to be plaintiffs in class-action lawsuits | failed
|
| Shareholder Approval of Compensation | Business regulation | If a public company does business in California, its shareholders must approve the compensation plans for the top 10 highest paid executives | failed
|
| Corporate Accountability Act | Business regulation | Compensate the public for the harm inflicted by corporate fraud | failed
|
| Prison Population Reduction Act | Prison | Reduce prison population through work time credit and resentencing | failed
|
| Prisoner Rights Act | Prison | Rehabilitation education for prisoners | failed
|
| Nuclear Energy Regulations | Nuclear Energy/Waste | Repeals existing restrictions on state approval of construction of nuclear power plants | Withdrawn 11-19-07
|
| Redistricting Proposal | Redistricting | Establishes Citizens Redistricting Commission | Failed
|
| Wealth Tax | Taxes | Imposes 45% tax on value of property exceeding $40 million | Denied
|
| Child Abuse Reporting | Welfare | To requiring training on recognizing child abuse and neglect to all those that are required to report it by law | Failed
|
| Redistricting Proposal | Redistricting | Establishes Citizens Redistricting Commission | Failed
|
| Worker's Compensation | Health Care / Medical | Allows employees to choose medical treatment centers without company approval when injured "because of" work | Failed
|
| Legislature Reimbursement | Government Administration | Restricts reimbursements to travel expenses. Would reduces expenses by $4.5 million annually | Failed
|
| Lobbying Gifts | Campaign Finance Reform | Bans legislatures from accepting gift from lobbyists or trade associations | Failed
|
| Class Action Lawsuit Fairness Act | Judicial Reform | - | Withdrawn
|
| Corporate Crime Reporting Act | Business Regulations | - | Withdrawn
|
| Treatment of Farm Animals | Animal Rights | Requires that an enclosure or tether confining specified farm animals allow the animals for the majority of every day to fully extend their limbs or wings, lie down, stand up, and turn around. | Withdrawn
|
| Internet Poker Statute | Gaming | Creates a state owned poker site | Failed
|
| Limit on Marriage | Civil Rights | Defines marriage as between one man and one woman | Failed
|
| Public Pension and Health Benefits Reduction | Health/Medical | Reduces pension and retirement health care benefits for all public employees hired after July 9th, 2009 | Failed
|
| Personal Income Tax Abolishment | Taxes | Abolishes state personal income tax. Increases state sales and use tax by 5.5 percent. | Failed
|
| Universal Health Care Reform | Health/Medical | Would pass the Governor's plans for universal health care | Withdrawn
|
| Candidate Vote Requirement | Election Reform | Mandates a runoff election when no candidate in a state or federal election receives more than 50 percent of the total votes cast for that office. | Failed
|
| Uninsured motorist | Law enforcement | Police officers who issue a citation for failure to provide proof of insurance must also remove the vehicle’s license plates (some exceptions) | Abandoned
|
