Proposition Summary

ALCOHOL SURTAX. CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT. INITIATIVE STATUTE. • Establishes Alcohol Surtax Fund in State Treasury. • Imposes surtax of five cents per 12 ounces beer, 5 ounces most wines, 1 ounce distilled spirits. • Imposes additional per unit floor stock tax. • Proceeds deposited into Alcohol Surtax Fund. • Guarantees 1989-90 nonsurtax funding with required annual adjustments, and appropriates Surtax Fund revenues for increased funding for alcohol and drug abuse prevention, treatment and recovery programs (24%); emergency medical care (25%); community mental health programs (15%); child abuse and domestic violence prevention training and victim services (15%); alcohol and drug related law enforcement costs, other programs (21%). Summary of Legislative Analyst's Estimate of Net State and Local Government Fiscal Impact: • Surtax would increase tax on beer from 4 cents to 57 cents per gallon, most wines from 1 cent to $1.29 per gallon, and distilled spirits from $2 to $8.40 per gallon. • The surtax would result in additional state revenues of approximately $360 million in 1990-91 and $760 million in 1991-92, depending on alcohol sales. • State General Fund revenues could increase or decrease several million dollars due to effect on sales tax revenues and revenues from existing alcoholic beverage taxes. • Local sales tax revenue would increase by several million dollars. • The guarantee for 1989-90 level nonsurtax funding, with required annual adjustments, for various health, mental health, criminal justice and other programs could increase costs by $180 million in 1990-91 and over $300 million in 1991-92; possibly additional tens of millions of dollars in subsequent years. • These costs would have to be funded from revenues other than surtax. • Expenditure of surtax revenues for prevention and treatment programs could result in future savings.

Proposition Number

134

Year

1990

Document Type

Proposition

Pass/Fail

Fail

Popular Vote Results

Y: 2285256; A: 31.01; N: 5076822; B: 68.97

Election Type

General Election

Proposition Type

Initiative statute

For Author

Dr. Donald M. Bowman, Executive Director, California Council on Alcohol Problems; Michael P. Trainor, M.D., President, American College of Emergency Physicians, State Chapter of California; Thomas A. Noble, President, California Association of Highway Patrolmen

Against Author

Frank M. Jordan, Police Chief, City and County of San Francisco; Larry McCarthy, President, California Taxpayers Association; Herbert E. Salinger, Former Executive Director, California School Boards Association

Rebuttal Author

Marc Kern, Ph.D., Addiction Alternatives Research & Treatment Center; Robert B. Hamilton, President, California State Fireman's Assn.; Dana W. Reed, Former Director, Calif. Dept. of Traffic Safety

Rebuttal Against Author

Harry Snyder, West Coast Director, Consumers Union, U.S., Inc. Publisher of Consumer Reports; Ric Loya, Exec. Director, CA Assoc. of School Health Educators; Jacqueline Masso, Santa Clara County Chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD)

Download

Share

COinS