A constitutional amendment ending all forms of slavery and involuntary servitude — largely targeted at forced prison labor — is headed to the November ballot in California, the latest state to take up an issue that’s gaining traction nationally.
The “End Slavery in California Act,” introduced by California’s Legislative Black Caucus as part of a bigger package of reparations bills earlier this year, will go before voters this fall after passing the state Legislature on Thursday.
It would amend a section of the California Constitution to state that “slavery and involuntary servitude are prohibited.”
California’s Constitution, like the 13th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, currently bans slavery and involuntary servitude — except as a punishment for crime.
The measure’s passage “represents more than just a legislative victory,” said Assemblymember Lori Wilson, a Democrat from the northeastern Bay Area who introduced it. “It is a testament to our collective resolve to correct historical wrongs and ensure that every individual in California is treated with the dignity and respect they deserve.”
That exception in slavery clauses in the U.S. Constitution and many state constitutions — the so-called “slavery loophole” — has gotten increasing attention in recent years, on both the national and the state level, in part in response to the protests following George Floyd’s killing in 2020.
Voters in four other states — Alabama, Oregon, Tennessee and Vermont — approved constitutional amendments to ban involuntary servitude as a punishment for crime in 2022.
Nevada is also slated to vote on a similar measure in November.
Under California’s current system, most people in prisons are assigned jobs, including working as janitors, fighting fires and making license plates. They can be disciplined for refusing those jobs, which typically pay less than $1 per hour.
Advocates of the change say the current rules disproportionately affect people of color, who make up a majority of the state’s prison population.
If voters approve it, the constitutional amendment would require prisons to give incarcerated people the option to reject prison work and cannot discipline them for refusing a work assignment.
Groups supporting the amendment, including the American Civil Liberties Union and the Anti-Recidivism Coalition, have been pushing to amend the state constitution for years.
A similar effort introduced in 2020 to put the issue on the ballot in 2022 failed to gain traction in the Legislature after Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom opposed it, saying it had the potential to cost billions of dollars if prisoners had to be paid the state minimum wage. (The current proposal does not require prisoners to be paid minimum wage.)
Those groups praised the measure’s passage on Thursday.
“For too long, slavery has been embedded in California’s constitution, forcing incarcerated people to work against their will and face punishment if they refuse,” Sam Lewis, executive director of the Anti-Recidivism Coalition, said in a statement. “Now, the California legislature has paved the way for ACA 8 to be placed on the ballot, allowing California voters to help end this cruel and racist practice.”
The amendment found broad support in both the Senate and the Assembly, with overwhelming majorities voting in favor.
Its passage came the same day as the deadline to finalize the November ballot in California, and follows several other significant changes to the slate of ballot measures that will appear before voters in November.
Several measures that had qualified for the ballot, including a tax-related constitutional amendment , a referendum on drilling oil wells near California homes, an initiative related to pandemic prevention and another on workers’ protections were withdrawn or removed from the ballot in the last week.
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