SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California voters decided on 10 ballot measures, including one that would once again make some nonviolent crimes like shoplifting felonies and another that would make the state’s minimum wage the highest in the nation.

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Here’s a look at some of the top proposals put to voters:

Proposition 36

Frustrated by what they see as rampant retail crime, voters approved an initiative that makes shoplifting a felony again for repeat offenders and increases penalties for some drug charges, including those involving the synthetic opioid fentanyl. The tough-on-crime ballot measure also gives judges the authority to order people with multiple drug charges into treatment.

The measure partially reverses a progressive law passed by voters in 2014 that downgraded several nonviolent crimes to felonies, including theft under $950 and some drug offenses. The reversal reflects widespread anger among voters, who increasingly blame homelessness and retail theft on criminal justice reform and progressive prosecutors.

It is difficult to quantify the retail crime problem in California due to the lack of local data. But many point to videos of large groups of people stealing on sight, such as at a Nike store dressed in Los Angeles after The Dodgers won the World Series last week as evidence of a crisis.

Supporters said the initiative is needed to close legal loopholes that have made it difficult for law enforcement to punish thieves and drug dealers.

“This is a resounding message that Californians are ready to have safer communities,” said Anne Marie Schubert, co-chair of the coalition supporting the measure.

Opponents, including Democratic state leaders and social justice groups, said it would disproportionately incarcerate poor people and those with substance use problems rather than targeting leaders who hire large groups of people to steal goods for online resale. The initiative would also eliminate drug and mental health funding that comes from savings from incarcerating fewer people.

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“Voters wanted solutions, but they were sold a false promise,” said Tinisch Hollins, executive director of the coalition that co-authored the 2014 law. “With the passage of this initiative and the potential threat of hundreds of millions of dollars to stabilize these programs, we’re going to be a lot worse off than we were before.”

Proposition 32

That would raise the minimum wage to $18 an hour by 2026, up from the current rate of $16 an hour for most people. It was too early to call on Wednesday morning.

Fast food workers have already received a pay rise this year at least $20 an hourand some health workers now do a minimum $23 per hour.

If approved, California would have the highest statewide minimum wage in the nation. In 2016 it became the first state to promote a $15 an hour the minimum wage. About 40 cities and counties already have minimum wages higher than the statewide rate, and six of them require minimums above $18 an hour starting this year.

Hawaii passed a law in 2022 raising its minimum wage to $18 an hour until 2028.

Supporters of the California measure estimate it would benefit 2 million workers, including hotel and grocery workers. Opponents say it would raise costs, lead to higher taxes and push businesses to cut jobs.

Proposition 4

California voters approved a plan to borrow $10 billion for various climate programs, the state’s largest investment to date in combating climate change.

Most of the money, $3.8 billion, will go to improving drinking water systems and preparing for drought and floods. Wildfire preparedness programs will receive $1.5 billion, while $1.2 billion will go toward combating sea level rise.

The rest will be split between parks and outdoor recreation programs; air quality; extreme heat preparation; protecting biodiversity; and farm and ranch sustainability.

Supporters of the measure say it will help the state better prepare for a changing climate and the growing threats of wildfires, water pollution and extreme heat.

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“Californians are taking the lead, choosing to invest now in climate solutions to protect us from fires and floods, build a more resilient future, and preserve the iconic California resources that make our state special,” Policy Director Liz Forsburg Pardi in California at Nature. Conservancy said in a statement.

But opponents called the bond the most expensive way to pay for programs that could have been funded through the state budget.

“Voters in California are rightly concerned about clean water and wildfire mitigation, but these are problems because the Legislature and governor have failed to adequately fund these important budget priorities while spending (or wasting) taxpayer money on other things,” Susan Shelley. , spokesman for the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, said in a statement.

It will cost taxpayers about $16 billion to pay, in annual installments of $400 million.

Proposition 6

This would change the state constitution in prohibits forced labor in any form. The constitution currently prohibits it, except as a punishment for murder. It was too early to call as of Wednesday morning, but neighboring Nevada passed a similar measure.

That exemption has become a target of criminal justice advocates who are concerned about prison working conditions. People who are incarcerated are often paid less than $1 an hour to fight fires, clean cells and landscape at cemeteries.

The initiative is included in a package of repair proposals introduced by lawmakers as part of an effort to atone and provide reparations for a history of racism and discrimination against black Californians.

Several other states, including Alabama, Oregon, Tennessee and Vermont, have passed constitutional amendments in recent years removing slavery and involuntary servitude exceptions.

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