California Constitution

The document that establishes and describes the duties, powers, structure and function of the government

Government of California

The government of California operates in the context of a democratic republic with three branches of government: the executive branch consisting of the Governor of California and the other elected constitutional officers; the legislative branch consisting of the California State Legislature which...

 of the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

. The original constitution, adopted in November 1849 in advance of California attaining U.S. statehood in 1850, was superseded by the current constitution, which was ratified on May 7, 1879. The result of Progressive

Progressive Era

The Progressive Era in the United States was a period of social activism and political reform that flourished from the 1890s to the 1920s. One main goal of the Progressive movement was purification of government, as Progressives tried to eliminate corruption by exposing and undercutting political...

 mistrust of elected officials, the 1879 constitution is the third longest in the world (behind the constitutions of Alabama

Alabama Constitution

The Constitution of the State of Alabama is the basic governing document of the U.S. state of Alabama. It was adopted in 1901 and is the sixth constitution that the state has had....

 and of India

Constitution of India

The Constitution of India is the supreme law of India. It lays down the framework defining fundamental political principles, establishes the structure, procedures, powers, and duties of government institutions, and sets out fundamental rights, directive principles, and the duties of citizens...

), and has been described as "the perfect example of what a constitution ought not to be".

History

The constitution has undergone numerous changes since its original drafting. It was rewritten from scratch several times prior to the drafting of the current 1879 constitution, which has itself been amended or revised (see below).

In response to widespread public disgust with the powerful railroads which controlled California's politics and economy at the start of the 20th century, Progressive Era

Progressive Era

The Progressive Era in the United States was a period of social activism and political reform that flourished from the 1890s to the 1920s. One main goal of the Progressive movement was purification of government, as Progressives tried to eliminate corruption by exposing and undercutting political...

 politicians pioneered the concept of aggressively amending the state constitution by initiative in order to remedy perceived evils. From 1911, the height of the U.S. Progressive Era, to 1986, the California Constitution was amended or revised over 500 times. The constitution gradually became increasingly bloated, leading to abortive efforts towards a third constitutional convention in 1897, 1914, 1919, 1930, 1934 and 1947. By 1962 the constitution had grown to 75,000 words, which at that time was longer than any other state constitution but Louisiana's. That year, the electorate approved the creation of a California Constitution Revision Commission, which worked on a comprehensive revision of the constitution from 1964 to 1976. The electorate ratified the Commission's revisions in 1966, 1970, 1972, and 1974, but rejected the 1968 revision, whose primary substantive effect would have been to make the state's superintendent of schools into an appointed rather than an elected official. The Commission ultimately removed about 40,000 words from the constitution. Repair California sought to qualify two initiatives on the 2010 statewide ballot which would have called for another, limited, constitutional convention, but this effort failed due to a lack of funding.

Signatories of the original 1849 Constitution

Many of the signatories to the state's original 1849 constitution were themselves prominent in their own right, and are therefore listed below. The list is notable for the inclusion of several Californio

Californio

Californio is a term used to identify a Spanish-speaking Catholic people, regardless of race, born in California before 1848...

s (early Californians of European, African and Native American mix).

Joseph Aram Charles T. Botts Elam Brown Jose Antonio Carrillo José Antonio Carrillo Captain José Antonio Ezequiel Carrillo was a Californio rancher, officer, and politician in the early years of Mexican Alta California and U.S... Jose Maria Covarrubias Elisha Oscar Crosby Lewis Dent Kimball Hale Dimmick Manuel Dominguez Manuel Dominguez Manuel Dominguez , born at the Mission San Juan Capistrano in Alta California, Viceroyalty of New Spain, and was the heir to the vast Rancho San Pedro land grant.-Juan Jose Dominguez:... Alfred James Ellis

Stephen C. Foster Stephen C. Foster (politician) Stephen Clark Foster was a politician, the first American mayor of Los Angeles under United States military rule. Foster served in the state constitutional convention, and was elected to the State Senate... Edward Gilbert Edward Gilbert Edward Gilbert was a Democratic California Politician. He was elected in November 1849 at-large as one of California's first two Representatives in the 31st Congress he was seated on September 11, 1850 and served until March 3, 1851. A newspaper editor after his service in Congress, he was killed... Pablo de la Guerra Pablo de la Guerra Pablo de la Guerra , from the de la Guerra family of Santa Barbara, California, was the Acting Lieutenant Governor of California, 1861-1862... William M. Gwin William M. Gwin William McKendree Gwin was an American medical doctor and politician.Born near Gallatin, Tennessee, his father, the Reverend James Gwin, was a pioneer Methodist minister under the Rev. William McKendree, his son's namesake. Rev. James Gwin also served as a soldier on the frontier under General... Henry Wager Halleck Henry Wager Halleck Henry Wager Halleck was a United States Army officer, scholar, and lawyer. A noted expert in military studies, he was known by a nickname that became derogatory, "Old Brains." He was an important participant in the admission of California as a state and became a successful lawyer and land developer... Julian Hanks Henry Hill Jacob David Hoppe Jacob David Hoppe Jacob David Hoppe was a 19th-century Californian newspaperman and politician.Jacob Hoppe was born in Maryland and came to California in 1846. He established a newspaper, which later became The Daily Alta California. He was elected a delegate to the 1849 California Constitutional Convention... John McDougall Myron Norton Pacificus Ord

Miguel de Pedrorena Rodman M. Price Rodman M. Price Rodman McCamley Price was an American Democratic Party politician, who represented in the United States House of Representatives from 1851–1853, and served as the 17th Governor of New Jersey, from 1854 to 1857.-Biography:... Antonio Maria Pico Jacinto Rodriguez Hugo Reid Hugo Reid Hugo Reid was a resident of Los Angeles, California who wrote a series of newspaper letters that described the culture, language, and modern circumstances of the local Gabrieliño Indians and criticized their treatment under the Franciscan mission system.-Life:Born in 1809 or 1810 in Cardross,... John Sutter John Sutter Johann Augus Sutter was a Swiss pioneer of California known for his association with the California Gold Rush by the discovery of gold by James W. Marshall and the mill making team at Sutter's Mill, and for establishing Sutter's Fort in the area that would eventually become Sacramento, the... Henry A. Tefft Jacob R. Snyder Winfield S. Sherwood Winfield S. Sherwood Winfield Scott Sherwood was one of the original signers of the 1849 California Constitution. On July 14, 1849 Sherwood was elected delegate to Constitutional Convention. He ran against Peter H. Burnett in the first statewide election for California Governor after Mexican rule in 1849, but he lost... William E. Shannon

Pedro Sainsevain Pierre Sainsevain Pierre "Don Pedro" Sainsevain was a French settler in California during the Mexican era. Sainsevain was the recipient of a Mexican land grant, and built a lumber mill and a flour mill... Abel Stearns John C. Shaw William M. Steuart Robert B. Semple Robert B. Semple Doctor Robert Baylor Semple was a 19th-century Californian newspaperman & politician.A newspaperman in Kentucky, he came west over the California Trail with Lansford Hastings in 1845, before the gold rush. During the 1846 Bear Flag Revolt, he led the Americans around Sutter's Fort in the... M. G. Vallejo Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo was a Californian military commander, politician, and rancher. He was born a subject of Spain, performed his military duties as an officer of Mexico, and shaped the transition of California from a Mexican district to an American state... Joseph Hobson Thomas L. Vermeule Joel P. Walker

Lansford Hastings Lansford Hastings Lansford Warren Hastings is best remembered as the developer of Hastings Cutoff, a shortcut across what is now the state of Utah, a factor in the Donner Party disaster of 1846.-Early life:... O. M. Wozencraft O. M. Wozencraft Oliver M. Wozencraft was a prominent early American settler in California. He had substantial involvement in negotiating treaties between California Native American Indian tribes and the United States of America... John McHenry Hollingsworth James McHall Jones James McHall Jones James McHall Jones was a United States federal judge.Born in Georgetown, Kentucky, Jones read law to enter the bar in 1843. He was in private practice in Plaquemine, Louisiana from 1843 to 1845... Thomas O. Larkin Thomas O. Larkin Thomas Oliver Larkin was an early American emigrant to Alta California and a signer of the original California Constitution. He was the United States' first and only consul to the California Republic.-Early years:... Francis J. Lippitt Francis J. Lippitt Francis J. Lippitt, a lawyer and veteran of the Mexican American War and Colonel and Brigadier General in the American Civil War.-Early Life:He was born in Providence, Rhode Island in 1812... Benjamin S. Lippincott Benjiman F. Moore Morton Matthew McCarver

In contrast to the inclusive 1849 convention, the 1879 constitutional convention was heavily dominated by recent immigrants from Europe, as well as migrants from southern and central states. As a result, both the atmosphere of the convention and the tenor of the document it produced were far more expressly racist against persons not of Western or Northern European descent. It would take nearly a century to purge the racism out of the state constitution.

Differences from other constitutions

The California Constitution is one of the longest in the world. The length has been attributed to a variety of factors, such as influence of previous Mexican civil law

Civil law (legal system)

Civil law is a legal system inspired by Roman law and whose primary feature is that laws are codified into collections, as compared to common law systems that gives great precedential weight to common law on the principle that it is unfair to treat similar facts differently on different...

, lack of faith in elected officials and the fact that many initiative

Initiative

In political science, an initiative is a means by which a petition signed by a certain minimum number of registered voters can force a public vote...

s take the form of a constitutional amendment. Several amendments involved the authorization of the creation of state government agencies, including the State Compensation Insurance Fund

State Compensation Insurance Fund

The State Compensation Insurance Fund is a workers' compensation insurer that was created as a "public enterprise fund" by the U.S. state of California, and today has partial autonomy from the rest of the state government...

 and the State Bar of California

State Bar of California

The State Bar of California is California's official bar association. It is responsible for managing the admission of lawyers to the practice of law, investigating complaints of professional misconduct, and prescribing appropriate discipline...

; the purpose of such amendments was to insulate the agencies from being attacked as an unconstitutionally broad exercise of police power

Police power

In United States constitutional law, police power is the capacity of the states to regulate behavior and enforce order within their territory for the betterment of the general welfare, morals, health, and safety of their inhabitants...

 or inherent judicial power.

Unlike other state constitutions, the California Constitution strongly protects the corporate existence of cities and counties and grants them broad plenary home rule powers. By specifically enabling cities to pay counties to perform governmental functions for them, Section 8 of Article XI resulted in the rise of the contract city

Contract city

Contract city is a term used in the U.S. for a city which provides municipal services by contract with another unit of government, public agency or private organizations....

.

Article 4, section 8(d) defines an "urgency statute" as one "necessary for immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety"; any proposed bill including such a provision includes a "statement of facts constituting the necessity" and a two-thirds majority of each house is required to also separately pass the bill's urgency section.

Many of the individual rights clauses in the state constitution have been construed as providing rights broader than the Bill of Rights

Bill of rights

A bill of rights is a list of the most important rights of the citizens of a country. The purpose of these bills is to protect those rights against infringement. The term "bill of rights" originates from England, where it referred to the Bill of Rights 1689. Bills of rights may be entrenched or...

 in the federal constitution

United States Constitution

The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It is the framework for the organization of the United States government and for the relationship of the federal government with the states, citizens, and all people within the United States.The first three...

. Two excellent examples include (1) the Pruneyard Shopping Center v. Robins

Pruneyard Shopping Center v. Robins

Pruneyard Shopping Center v. Robins, , was a U.S. Supreme Court decision issued on June 9, 1980 which arose out of a free speech dispute between the Pruneyard Shopping Center in Campbell, California, and several local high school students...

case involving an implied right to free speech in private shopping centers, and (2) the first decision in America in 1972 which found the death penalty unconstitutional, California v. Anderson

California v. Anderson

The People of the State of California v. Robert Page Anderson, 493 P.2d 880, 6 Cal. 3d 628 , was a landmark case in the state of California that outlawed the use of capital punishment...

, 6 Cal. 3d 628. This noted that under California's state constitution a stronger protection applies than under the U.S. Constitution's 8th Amendment; the former prohibits punishments that are "cruel or unusual", while the latter only prohibits punishments that are "cruel and unusual".

Two universities are expressly mentioned in the constitution: the University of California

University of California

The University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...

 and Stanford University

Stanford University

The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...

. UC is one of only nine state-run public universities in the United States whose independence from political interference is expressly guaranteed by the state constitution. Since 1900, Stanford has enjoyed the benefit of a constitutional clause shielding Stanford-owned property from taxes as long as it is used for educational purposes.

Amendments and revisions

The constitution of California distinguishes between constitutional amendments

Constitutional amendment

A constitutional amendment is a formal change to the text of the written constitution of a nation or state.Most constitutions require that amendments cannot be enacted unless they have passed a special procedure that is more stringent than that required of ordinary legislation...

 and revisions, the latter of which is considered to be a "substantial change to the entire constitution, rather than ... a less extensive change in one or more of its provisions". Both require passage of a California ballot proposition

California ballot proposition

In California, a ballot proposition is a proposed law that is submitted to the electorate for approval in a direct vote . It may take the form of a constitutional amendment or an ordinary statute. A ballot proposition may be proposed by the State Legislature or by a petition signed by members of...

 by voters, but they differ in how they may be proposed. An amendment may be placed on the ballot by either a two-thirds vote in the California State Legislature

California State Legislature

The California State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of California. It is a bicameral body consisting of the lower house, the California State Assembly, with 80 members, and the upper house, the California State Senate, with 40 members...

 or signatures equal to 8% of the votes cast in the last gubernatorial election

Governor of California

The Governor of California is the chief executive of the California state government, whose responsibilities include making annual State of the State addresses to the California State Legislature, submitting the budget, and ensuring that state laws are enforced...

, among the lowest thresholds for similar measures of any U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

. , this was 694,354 signatures compared to an estimated 2007 population of 36,553,215. Revisions originally required a constitutional convention

Constitutional convention (political meeting)

A constitutional convention is now a gathering for the purpose of writing a new constitution or revising an existing constitution. A general constitutional convention is called to create the first constitution of a political unit or to entirely replace an existing constitution...

 but today may be passed with the approval of both two-thirds of the legislature and a majority of voters; while simplified since its beginnings, the revision process is considered more politically charged and difficult to successfully pass than an amendment.

The exact distinction between an amendment and a revision has never been clear, as highlighted by Proposition 8

California Proposition 8 (2008)

Proposition 8 was a ballot proposition and constitutional amendment passed in the November 2008 state elections...

 in 2008. Passed as an initiative amendment in response to the California Supreme Court's finding that same-sex marriage

Same-sex marriage

Same-sex marriage is marriage between two persons of the same biological sex or social gender. Supporters of legal recognition for same-sex marriage typically refer to such recognition as marriage equality....

was allowed under the constitution, the proposition defined marriage as between a man and a woman. Opponents argued that Proposition 8 constituted a revision, and was thus beyond the scope of the initiative process. However, the California Supreme Court eventually ruled that it was in fact an amendment, and within the rights of the voters to add to the constitution.

Official texts

• 1849 California Constitution, full text, California State Archives
• Records of the Constitutional Convention of 1849, California State Archives
• 1879 California Constitution, original unamended full text, California State Archives
• 1878–1879 Constitutional Convention Working Papers, California State Archives
• Current California Constitution, full text, California Legislative Counsel
• Current California Constitution, searchable index, California Legislative Counsel