Document Type

Blog Post

Publication Date

3-27-2025

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In 2014, California adopted Proposition 47, a law aimed at reducing incarceration rates and promoting rehabilitation in the community. Proposition 47 reclassified certain low-level drug offenses and property theft under $950 from felonies to misdemeanors. Significantly, felonies generally result in longer sentences in state prison, whereas misdemeanors result in shorter sentences in county jail, typically not exceeding one year.  Proposition 47 reduced the sentences of over 200,000 people incarcerated in California state prisons, resulting in the state saving $816 million in total prison spending between fiscal years 2016-17 and 2024-25.

This post was originally published on the Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights and Social Justice website on March 27, 2025. The original post can be accessed via the Archived Link button above.

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