By admin 
The union that put the billionaire tax on the ballot has put little money behind its other measure, Proposition 44, a low-polling measure focused on health clinic spending.
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SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West spent a little more than $20,000 on Prop. 44 from July 1 to Sept. 19, according to its most recent campaign filings, while opponents spent more than $32 million in the same period.
The SEIU-UHW appears to have concentrated its limited resources on Prop. 40, a nationally-watched effort to impose a one-time, 5% tax on billionaires’ wealth to offset federal healthcare cuts. The “Yes on 40” campaign spent $4.4 million during the period — still less than 10% of the total spent by billionaire tax opponents.
A Public Policy Institute of California found Prop. 44 was the least popular propositions surveyed, with 34% of likely voters saying they supported the measure. Prop. 40, on the other hand, showed 52% support, though subsequent surveys have showed lower levels of support.
Prop. 44 would require federally-funded health clinics to spend 90% of their revenues on patient services, a move SEIU-UHW says would strengthen accountability. Critics like the California Primary Care Association argue the measure is poorly designed and was sponsored by SEIU-UHW President Dave Regan to win concessions from clinics SEIU-UHW is seeking to unionize.
Last month, the CPCA and five clinics filed a lawsuit accusing Regan and his union of racketeering. They argued he launches “punitive, harmful, and often long-shot and repetitive statewide or local ballot initiatives that are used as bargaining chips to extort broad concessions.” The case has yet to be heard.
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The CPCA filed a lawsuit in April seeking to keep Prop. 44 off the ballot. A federal judge dismissed the case in August, saying the plaintiffs lacked standing.
SEIU-UHW spokesperson Renée Saldaña said the union had not abandoned Prop. 44 and denied that bringing it was a negotiating tactic, calling the allegations in the latest lawsuit “categorically false.”
“Our path to victory is making sure voters understand what Prop 44 does: with federal cuts putting enormous pressure on California’s healthcare system, it ensures clinics that receive public funding spend that money on patient care,” Saldaña said. “SEIU-UHW members will be making that case through Election Day.”
No on 44 spokesperson Molly Weedn said they remained committed to defeating the measure.
“It’s shameful that UHW would put such a dangerous measure on the ballot and force community clinics to mount a campaign to defeat it, especially when there is so much work to do in communities ensuring people are getting the healthcare they need and deserve,” Weedn said in an email.
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