Little-known June ballot measure could alter state political landscape

Toward the end of the June primary ballot, voters will be asked to weigh in on Proposition 15, a measure that has gotten little attention but could transform the landscape of California politics.

Proposition 15 has a seemingly modest goal: a pilot program that would make the 2014 and 2018 secretary of state elections publicly financed and ask candidates to forgo political contributions and adhere to strict spending limits.

But activists on both sides of the issue say the proposition is more significant than just two elections for one relatively low-profile office and could be expanded to all statewide offices in the future.

“I am one of those believers that for us to have real elections in the United States, how can it possibly be that a corporation can spend all that money,” said Eva Goodwin-Noriega, a retired Spanish teacher from Costa Mesa who is campaigning for Proposition 15’s passage. “No wonder people don’t want to vote. … The logical extension is for getting all the money … out of the elections and switching to public financing of campaigns.”

The ballot measure’s supporters say publicly financed campaigns, if expanded to all statewide offices, could free politicians from the burden of raising money and allow them to govern without being beholden to special interests. But opponents of the measure say voters have already twice rejected public financing of elections, most recently in 2006 when voters resoundingly defeated Proposition 89.

“Our major concern is the provision that they snuck in there to repeal the ban on public financing,” said Richard Wiebe, spokesman for StopProp15.com. “Very simply, (voters) don’t want their tax money used on political campaigns.”

Proponents argue that no tax dollars will be used for campaigns. More on that later.

Proposition 15, officially called the California Fair Elections Act, provides public financing for both the primary and general elections in 2014 and 2018 for secretary of state candidates who opt into the program. The secretary of state election was chosen for the pilot program because the office oversees elections and lobbyists, and it is the cheapest of the statewide races, organizers say.

Those who opt in to public financing would not be allowed to raise or spend additional money for their campaigns, except for funds used for legal defense or inaugural activities. Violators would face fines, possible jail time and prohibitions from running for office in the future.

To qualify for public financing under Proposition 15, candidates would have to gather $5 contributions and signatures from 7,500 registered voters to prove they have a broad base of support. If they qualify, candidates would turn over the $5 contributions they’ve raised and receive $1 million in state funding for the primary. The primary winners would get $1.3 million for the general election.

There is also a “fair fight” provision that allows participating candidates to get additional money if they are outspent by a candidate not participating in public financing or attacked by an independent group. They would receive funds to match those spent by their opponents, up to a maximum of $4 million for the primary and $5.2 million in the general election.

The proposition would pay for campaigns with the $5 contributions raised by candidates and a $350 a year registration fee for lobbyists, lobbying firms and lobbyist employers. The current fee is $12.50 a year.

The state Legislative Analyst’s Office estimates the measure would raise more than $6 million every four years, in the ballpark of the $5 million to $8 million the office estimates would be needed to fund each secretary of state election.

Supporters of Proposition 15 include AARP, the California Nurses Assn., the League of Women Voters of California and the Sierra Club. Opponents include the Institute of Governmental Advocates, a trade group for California lobbyists; the California Chamber of Commerce; the California Fair Political Practices Commission; and the California Department of Finance.

One of the biggest disputes about the proposition is whether taxpayer money would be used to fund campaigns, an idea that voters have rejected.

Wiebe, the spokesman for StopProp15.com, said his organization considers the fees on lobbyists to be a new tax. He warned that if the lobbyist fees were ruled unconstitutional or if not enough money were generated to pay for campaigns, the state could take the money out of the taxpayers’ general fund.

“Right now, it’s a tax on lobbyists,” Wiebe said. “Later it can be expanded to include (a tax on) everyone.”

But John Goodman, a Garden Grove resident who is leading the Orange County effort to pass Proposition 15, said that argument is dishonest.

“There’s a claim about whether it raises taxes,” said Goodman, an entrepreneur and veteran activist. “It’s only on lobbyists and those who hire lobbyists. No general fund taxpayer dollars will go to candidates. … None.”

The Legislative Analyst’s Office said in its analysis that if not enough money is raised to provide full funding to the candidates, “public funding provided to the candidates would have to be reduced so that overall expenses do not exceed the funds available to the program.” The analysis makes no mention of taking money from the general fund.

Wiebe said that StopProp15.com is just beginning to organize its efforts against the measure. The campaign against Proposition 15 is funded by the Institute of Governmental Advocates, the lobbyist trade group.

The campaign is drawing a large and diverse group of players, he said, but is unlikely to spend a large amount of money to defeat the proposition.

“This is going to be a very modest effort,” Wiebe said. “We’re going to rely largely on the news media to get the message out. We’re not going to spend a lot on advertising.”

Proposition supporters, organized as YesFairElections.org, are taking a different approach, organizing a statewide grassroots campaign.

The de facto headquarters for the campaign in Orange County is Goodman’s home in Garden Grove.

Nearly 20 people gathered on Goodman’s back patio in late March to plot strategy. The June 8 election was approaching, and they needed to get to work.

“Today’s meeting is about getting the volunteers who are passionate about this proposition organized effectively to promote the proposition,” he said.

The volunteers – many of them veteran activists –brainstormed ways to get the word out to voters, most of whom have likely never heard of Proposition 15. They planned booths at farmers markets, festivals and colleges; speeches at city councils, voters’ organizations and senior centers; and phone banks to get voters to the polls.

“The biggest challenge is getting out the word,” Goodman said. “There are millions of voters … but there are, at best, hundreds of us.”

The volunteers said they are motivated by the corrupting influence of the more than $1 billion candidates for California statewide offices have raised for campaigns since 2001. Goodwin-Noriega, an activist from Costa Mesa, said she wants to tell voters there is another option.

“Teaching people about how much our country is controlled by corporations,” she said, “and teaching them that this does not have to be.”

Both sides say they are confident of success.

Proposition 15 supporters tout an October poll of 800 likely voters showing that 63% of likely voters favored the proposition, 22% were opposed and 16% undecided. Even 58% of registered Republicans support the measure, the poll found.

“This is, I feel, a bipartisan issue that is equally attractive to anyone who has studied it no matter what their leanings,” Goodman said.

Wiebe dismissed the poll results.

“The most reliable poll that I’m aware of was the general election four years ago when 74% of the voters said no” to Proposition 89, which would have publicly funded elections with a tax on businesses.