Initiatives on the Loose

Two new initiatives, both hailing from the right, are beginning circulation today to qualify for the ballot next year. The first is sponsored by Sen. George Runner and his wife, Assemblywoman Sharon Runner. The title and part of the summary appear below: Sex Offenders. Sexually Violent Predators. Punishment, Residence Restrictions and Monitoring. Increases penalties for violent and habitual sex offenders and child molesters. Prohibits registered sex offenders from residing within 2,000 feet of any school or park, and requires lifetime Global Positioning System monitoring of felony registered sex offenders. Expands the definition of a sexually violent predator, and changes the current two-year involuntary civil commitment for a sexually violent predator to an indeterminate commitment, subject to annual review by the Director of Mental Health and petition by the sexually violent predator for conditional release or unconditional discharge. The initiative is estimated to cost the state in the "low hundreds of millions of dollars" annually and is an initiative statute. The second, more controversial initiative is sponsored by Gail Knight, the widow of the late Pete Knight, who sponsored Proposition 22 in 2000. Invalidation of Domestic Partnerships. Marriage. Amends California Constitution to provide that a marriage between a man and a woman is the only legal union that shall be valid or recognized in California. Amendment bars domestic partnerships from being valid or recognized as legal unions in California. Eliminates certain rights and obligations conferred by California law on same-sex and heterosexual couples registered as domestic partners, concerning subject areas including, but not limited to, community property, intestate succession, stepparent adoption, child custody/support, hospital visitation, healthcare decisions for an incapacitated partner, insurance benefits, and recovery for wrongful death. It is an initiative constitutional amendment--on the hot-button social issue du jour.