SAN DIEGO (KGTV) – On Tuesday, California voters overwhelmingly passed Proposition 36, which would create tougher penalties for drug and theft crimes.

San Diego business owners say they were desperately hoping this proposal would pass.

Walid Alraheb will be the first to tell you that owning and running a business is not easy.

He owns three businesses on El Cajon Boulevard: ABC Market and Deli, Cage Smoke Shop and Cage Three.

“It’s all over; these people are all over the city and they know exactly what the law is,” Alraheb said of the shoplifters.

In addition to running his businesses, he says that in recent years, he and his employees have had to keep an eye out for shoplifters who break into the store and take what they want.

“There’s a lot of people that come in and we can’t even see them because we’re so busy and we can’t even talk to them and we know the inventory is missing and there’s nothing we can do about it. “, says Alraheb.

When Alraheb heard that Prop 36 passed by a 70-30 margin on Tuesday, he was thrilled. The proposal allows felony charges for thefts under $950 for repeat offenders, as well as allowing felony charges for possession of certain drugs.

“Of course, less thieves, we’ll save a lot of money from people stealing things, and we feel with this law, we can at least call the police,” says Alraheb.

Opponents of the proposal argued that passing the measure would lead to more crime, arguing that it would waste money on prisons and divert funds from mental health and drug rehabilitation programs.