In the Nov. 8 special election, people will vote on Propositions 75 and 76, both of which could concern student interest.

According to the California Official Voter Guide, Prop. 75 prohibits unions from taking money from members’ paychecks without prior consent for the sole use of political campaigns. However, this would not apply for money taken out for health care or charitable donations. Also, these unions would have to submit a record of all individual public employees’ and organizations’ political contributions to the Fair Political Practices Commission.

Stan Oden, a government assistant professor, said that this proposition is the heart of the special election. “It silences the voice of unions,” Oden said.

Oden said a similar proposition was voting on in 1998. “It failed then and it will fail again this year,” he said.

In 1998, Proposition 226 went before the voters of California on the primary election ballot. This proposition would have required all unions in the state to obtain their members’ written consent every year before using the union dues for political campaigns, according to the 1998 California Secretary of State’s Web site.

Via an e-mail from his office, California State Treasurer Phil Angelides “believes Proposition 75 is part of a partisan national plan to weaken the ability of working people to participate in our democracy, while large corporations remain free to supply the governor’s war chest with campaign cash.”

Ken DeBow, a government professor, said proposition 75 aims to weaken labor unions. “I understand that there is too much campaign contributions on both sides. But it is not a good idea,” DeBow said.

The other proposition on the Nov. 8 ballot is Proposition 76. According to the California Official Voter guide, Prop. 76 would limit state spending to the previous year’s level plus three prior years’ average revenue growth. It would also change the state minimum school funding requirements.

From the email from his office, State Treasurer Phil Angelides said, “This proposition would reduce the voter-approved, minimum-funding guarantee for schools by about $4 billion and open the door to further cuts.

Professor DeBow has stated that Prop. 76 would give too much power to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. “If you look at the initiative, it isn’t harder for him to raise taxes and to cut programs.”

Mr. Oden called Prop. 76 “a wholesale power in a so-called emergency.”

The Alliance for a Better California opposes both Prop. 75 and 76. This coalition includes groups such as the California Federation of Teachers, the California Labor Federation, the California Teachers Association and the California Correctional Peace Officers Association.

Supporters for these propositions include the California District Attorneys Association, the Western Growers Association, the California State Sheriffs’ Association and the Chief Probation Officers of California.

Jamie Gonzales can be reached at [email protected]