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The sponsor of the "Cal 3" initiative to divide California into three states on Friday asked the Supreme Court to dismiss a complaint demanding that the proposal be withdrawn from the November poll.
Tim Draper, a venture capitalist who spent more than $ 1.7 million to support the initiative, told the court in a letter that there is not enough time to properly consider the legal challenge of his effort.
He said that he had not been properly served with the trial, giving him less time to respond.
"I was given just a day or two to answer a complex, multifaceted, multi-faceted call on my constitutional right to initiative," wrote Draper. "The long history of this Court to jealously guard the exercise of power of initiative should not be cavalierly neglected now, especially on such a truncated schedule. "
THE ADVERSARIES OF THE CALIFORNIA SUSPENSION PROJECT FOR THE EXTRACT DE BALLOT
an environmentalist group, filed the lawsuit on Monday, arguing that Draper's plan is beyond the scope of an initiative because it would radically alter the government and constitutional framework of California. [19659009] "The dislocation and disruption that would be caused by something as big as can not be underestimated," said Carlyle Hall, a lawyer working on the lawsuit. "That's not going to make things better. . "
" The dislocate ion and the disruption that would be caused by something so big simply can not be underestimated.
The initiative could harm the environment if California's strong environmental protections were dropped and replaced with something weaker, that could happen if the state split, Hall said.
Draper argued that the "Cal 3" measure does not go beyond what can be accomplished in an initiative. If it is passed by voters, it would only be the first step towards the division of the state, he said.
The Cal 3 initiative would shatter the state in Northern California, California, and Southern California.
Passing the polls is only the first hurdle
The measure then asks the governor to seek the final approval of the US Congress – probably an order of magnitude.
If Congress gave the green light, it would then be up to the state legislature to determine exactly how the split would occur, including how state debts would be divided.
Each of the three states would determine its own governance structure.
Proponents of California's division argue that the nation's most populous state has become ungovernable because of its size, disparities in wealth, and geographic diversity.
CALIFORNIA: THE PLAN OF THE THREE STATES FOR THE NOVEMBER BULLETIN
Michael Salerno, Professor of Law at the University of California Hastings, described the proposal as having deep ramifications if it is approved
"It would not surprise me if the court removed this from the ballot," he said.
Although California as it exists today is highly democratic, the newly proposed Southern California might not be. Democrats have only a slight record advantage over Republicans in this region.
Associated Press contributed to this report.
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