Proposition 75 was rejected by voters in the November 2005 election.
PROP. 75
Public Employee Union Dues. Restrictions on Political Contributions. Employee Consent Requirement.
Should public employee unions be required to obtain annual written consent from each member in order to use a portion of that member’s dues for political activity?
Prohibits using public employee union dues for political contributions without individual employees’ prior consent. Excludes contributions benefitting charities or employees. Requires unions to maintain and, upon request, report member political contributions to Fair Political Practices Commission.
Union members in California who don’t agree with the political decisions of their union leadership have to request that the union not use their dues towards political campaigns. This measure would flip that arrangement and require unions to receive approval from each member, each year, on the use of union dues for any and all political campaigning.
- Background, key web sites, public opinion polls, select news and reports by the IGS Library at UC Berkeley
- In Depth Non-Partisan Analysis, League of Women Voters Ca.
- Pros & Cons Analysis, League of Women Voters Ca.
- Notable backers and detractors as well as major campaign contributors, California Voter Foundation
- Official Legislative Analysis, California Legislative Analyst’s Office (PDF)
- “Unions have blunted bids to curb political spending,” Sacramento Bee
- “Prop. 75 Could Weaken Clout of Unions,” Los Angeles Times, via the California State Employees Association
- “Why not hit corporate bucks along with union dues?”, The Ukiah Daily Journal
- “Unions Press for Disclosure of Political Donations,” Fox News
- “Unions Working a New Tactic Against Governor,” Los Angeles Times
