I promised to write how this all came about, and here it is. I carried AB 34 in 1999, my first year in office. That legislation, and several followup pieces of legislation, established the AB 34 programs, of which there are now 55 statewide.
My friend and colleague, Rusty Selix, and I both concluded that we were never going to be able to fully fund AB 34 programs through the legislative process, or any other way. Several polls over last 15 years had suggested voters supported more public spending on mental health--even if it meant tax increases.
In 2002, I had two years left in office. I became convinced that initiative was the way to go. Rusty presented the idea to the board of the CCCMHA (California Coalition of Community Mental Health Agencies) in October 2002, and they indicated they would each contribute $20,000 and support it if a credible public opinion poll showed support. The public opinion polls, done in February and March 2003 showed strong support for the idea. After that we went full speed ahead.
We drafted the language to fit into existing law and into existing systems of care, and added the innovative program compontent, the prevention and early intervention program component, the human resources component, and the capital facilities component. We felt strongly that we needed an oversight commission to award the grants under the initiative, and to ensure that the programs were effective and that we would be spending money wisely and for the best outcomes. The oversight commission idea was added into the language.
After that, the Attorney General’s office prepared the ballot summary, and we were off to collecting signatures. We collected almost double the number we needed, and the initiative is now in the process of being certified for the ballot in November.
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