2024 California Proposition 4
 | This article relies largely or entirely on a single source. (November 2024) |
 | This article needs to be updated. (August 2025) |
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November 5, 2024
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Authorizing bonds for safe drinking water, wildlife prevention, and protecting communities and natural lands from climate risks Authorizes $10 billion in general obligation bonds for water, wildfire prevention, and protection of communities and lands. Requires annual audits. Increased state costs of about $400 million annually for 40 years to repay the bond. | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Source: California Secretary of State[1] | |||||||||||||||||||
Proposition 4, titled Authorizing bonds for safe drinking water, wildlife prevention, and protecting communities and natural lands from climate risks, was a California ballot proposition and legislative statutes that passed by vote on in the 2024 general election on November 5, 2024.
The proposition "authorize[d] $10 billion in general obligation bonds for water, wildfire prevention, and protection of communities and lands."[2][3]
Aftermath
[edit]Despite the pitch being for new expenditures to be funded by the proposition, over $275 million in Prop 4 funds have been used to backfill the state's general fund. California lawmakers have faced criticism for using a significant amount of Proposition 4 funds as pork, including $16 million for a conservation easement for a private ranch in Santa Barbara, $40 million to secure access to a private beach, and $1 million for an alternative meat research facility at UC Davis.[4]
The 2025-2026 California Spending Plan sets forth the broad allocations of the proceeds of the bonds with $3.5 billion allocated for the first year implementation:
- Safe Drinking Water, Drought, Flood and Water Resilience - $1.2 billion of $3.8 billion;
- Wildfire and Forest Resilience - $598 million of $1.5 billion;
- Coastal Resilience - $279 million of $1.2 billion;
- Biodiversity and Nature-Based Climate Solutions - $390 million of $1.2 billion;
- Clean Energy - $275 million of $850 million;
- Park Creation and Outdoor Access - $466 million of $700 million;
- Extreme Heat Mitigation - $110million of $450 million; and
- Climate Smart Agriculture- $153 million of $300 million[5]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "California General Election November 5, 2024: State Ballot Measures - Statewide Results: Proposition 4". Retrieved November 7, 2024.
- ^ "California Proposition 4, Parks, Environment, Energy, and Water Bond Measure (2024)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 2026-01-29.
- ^ "Wayback Machine". leginfo.legislature.ca.gov. Archived from the original on 2025-12-08. Retrieved 2026-01-29.
{{cite web}}: Cite uses generic title (help) - ^ Sabalow, Ryan (2025-11-07). "California lawmakers sent millions to their districts while making budget cuts elsewhere". CalMatters. Retrieved 2025-11-14.
- ^ "The 2025-26 California Spending Plan: Proposition 4". lao.ca.gov. Retrieved 2026-01-29.