Sacramento, CA – Assemblyman Tom Lackey (R-Palmdale) today issued a statement blasting the Governor’s May Revision for intentionally withholding funding for Proposition 36, despite it passing by a landslide. The measure was intended to crack down on retail theft and drug related crimes, but without resources, it is now unable to be properly be implemented across the state.
“The Governor says he cares about crime, addiction, and homelessness, then defunds the very program meant to address them,” said Assemblyman Tom Lackey, a retired California Highway Patrol Sergeant and a member of the Public Safety Committee.
“This is not negligence – it is a calculated move. The Governor is setting Prop 36 up to fail so he can later claim he was right all along. It is political manipulation at the expense of public safety.”
Prop 36 passed with nearly 70% of voter support, but with zero funding in the Governor’s budget, local governments are left scrambling for implementation resources they do not have. The Governor offered only a vague response that future funds could come from Proposition 47, the very measure Prop 36 was intended to reform.
The result, a voter-approved mandate set up to fail.
“A budget reflects priorities – and this one tells Californians their voices do not matter,” Lackey concluded. “Voters demanded stronger action to protect their communities. Instead, they got a Governor who is more focused on protecting his political narrative than protecting the public.”
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