Prop 8 Foes & Fans Raking in Big Bucks

"Money Makes the World Go 'Round"

The fight over whether to adopt Proposition 8 on the November ballot to amend the California constitution to eliminate the right of same-sex couples to marry seems to be picking up steam financially. On Tuesday, July 29, No on 8-Equality California announced that Pacific Gas & Electric Co. is donating $250,000 to help fight the proposed amendment, reports the LA times. But the American Family Association has donated $500,000 to help support it. The Political Blotter blogs about the AFA's and other significant contributions here.

Prop 8 retitled & redescribed

"What's my name again?"

Although grammatically unusual – I would have expected most initiative titles to be noun phrases rather than verb phrases – there's a new name as well as a new summary description for Proposition 8, the proposed marriage-restricting amendment to the California constitution that will be on the ballot on November 4. Seemingly agreeing with some of the second argument in the writ that sought and failed to get the measure removed from the ballot, the state Attorney General announced this week that the measure will be listed as follows on the ballot (barring successful legal challenge):

Proposition 8
ELIMINATES RIGHT OF SAME-SEX COUPLES TO MARRY.
INITIATIVE CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT

Changes California Constitution to eliminate right of same-sex couples to marry. Provides that only a marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.

Fiscal Impact: Over the next few years, potential revenue loss, mainly sales taxes, totaling in the several tens of millions of dollars, to state and local governments. In the long run, likely little fiscal impact to state and local governments.

Court Lets California Constitution Amendment Fight Continue

The California Supreme Court has ruled in Bennett v. Bowen, the case filed seeking to have Proposition 8 removed from the November 4 ballot. (Prop 8 would amend the state constitution to deny same-sex couples the right to marry.) The Court summarily denied the Application for Stay and Petition for Extraordinary Relief, Including Writ of Mandate. See the July 16 entry in the Docket for the case. With that unsurprising development, the battle over the proposed amendment will certainly continue in earnest.