Prop 23 Essay

Austin O’Such

Proposition 23

Proposition 23 is a new ballot initiative California voters will vote on November 2, 2010. This proposition would Suspend Assembly Bill 32, the Global Warming Act of 2006 that requires greenhouse gas emissions to be reduced. The goal is to reduce the greenhouse gases by using a scoping plan, a plan that contains the main strategies California will use to reduce the greenhouse gases that cause climate change (Assembly Bill 32 – California). Proposition 23, if passed, would freeze the mandates of AB 32 until California's unemployment rate drops to 5.5% or below for four consecutive quarters. Passing Proposition 23 would require the state to abandon implementation of comprehensive greenhouse-gas-reduction programs that includes increased renewable energy, cleaner fuel requirements, and mandatory emission reporting and fee requirements for major polluters until the suspension ends. The economy, public health, and labor would be majorly affected by proposition 23. Therefore we should all vote NO on proposition 23 to ensure we keep AB32 and to keep the air clean.

After being passed in 2006 by vote 4-2, the California air resource board began their research in developing a scoping plan to reduce greenhouse gases to levels of 1990 by 2020(Assembly Bill 32 – California). The reduction measures implemented to meet the 2020 target will begin by the start of 2011. Greenhouse gases are gases that trap heat from the sun within the earth's atmosphere, causing climate to rise and making our planet a warmer place. This climate change and temperature increase is called global warming. Because California is so big at providing industrial jobs, it is the second biggest transmitter of theses greenhouse gasses in the US (NO on 23 - Stop the Dirty Energy). Climate change is a global issue and California has made drastic steps in order to push a green economy. It has become one of the most influential states in regards to making...