Proposition 39 was an

initiative Popular initiative A popular initiative (also citizens' initiative) is a form of direct democracy by which a petition meeting certain hurdles can force a legal procedure on a proposition. In direct initiative, the proposition is put direct ...

state

constitutional amendment A constitutional amendment (or constitutional alteration) is a modification of the constitution of a polity, organization or other type of entity. Amendments are often interwoven into the relevant sections of an existing constitution, directly alt ...

and

statute A statute is a law or formal written enactment of a legislature. Statutes typically declare, command or prohibit something. Statutes are distinguished from court law and unwritten law (also known as common law) in that they are the expressed wil ...

which appeared on the November 7, 2000, California general election ballot. Proposition 39 passed with 5,431,152 ''Yes'' votes, representing 53.4 percent of the total votes cast. Proposition 39 was essentially a milder version of Proposition 26, which would have ended the

Proposition 13 Proposition 13 (officially named the People's Initiative to Limit Property Taxation) is an amendment of the Constitution of California enacted during 1978, by means of the initiative process, to cap property taxes and limit property reassessmen ...

supermajority vote requirement altogether (imposing a simple majority vote requirement), but was defeated with 3,521,327 "Yes" votes, representing 48.7 percent of the total votes cast, in the March 7, 2000,

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

primary election Primary elections or primaries are elections held to determine which candidates will run in an upcoming general election. In a partisan primary, a political party selects a candidate. Depending on the state and/or party, there may be an "open pr ...

. The measure was funded by Ann and John Doerr, John T. Walton and

Reed Hastings Wilmot Reed Hastings Jr. (born October 8, 1960) is an American billionaire businessman. He is the co-founder and chairman of Netflix, Inc., which provides the Netflix streaming service. Hastings serves on a number of boards and works with various ...

; it was opposed by the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association.

Main Effect

The main effect of Proposition 39 was to amend

by lowering the required

supermajority A supermajority is a requirement for a proposal to gain a specified level of support which is greater than the threshold of one-half used for a simple majority. Supermajority rules in a democracy can help to prevent a majority from eroding fun ...

vote necessary for voters to approve local school bonds, from two-thirds (2/3) of the votes cast, to fifty-five percent (55%) of the votes cast.League of Women Voters
"Proposition 39: School Facilities. 55% Local Vote. Bonds, Taxes Accountability Requirements," (2000).

Property Tax Increase to Repay Bonds

Voter approved school bonds under Proposition 39 are paid off by raising property taxes above the one percent (1%) property tax rate limit established by

in 1978.

Constitutional Debt Provision

Proposition 39 also lowered, as it relates to school bonds, the local voter approval requirement to incur debt from a two-thirds (2/3) vote to fifty-five percent (55%). The two-thirds vote requirement to incur debt is separate from the property tax limits of

, and had previously been part of the

California Constitution The Constitution of California () is the primary organizing law for the U.S. state of California, describing the duties, powers, structures and functions of the government of California. California's constitution was drafted in both English ...

since 1879.

Charter School Facilities

Proposition 39 further included statutory provisions relating to

charter school A charter school is a school that receives government funding but operates independently of the established state school system in which it is located. It is independent in the sense that it operates according to the basic principle of autono ...

facilities.

References

{{reflist 39

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

Property taxes