SACRAMENTO — California voters were poised to approve $37 billion in borrowing for a panoply of public works projects, according to unofficial election returns Tuesday but were rejecting proposals to expand government programs through new taxes on cigarettes and oil companies.
The massive public works bond package was championed by Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and legislative leaders after extensive negotiations earlier this year. Appearing on the ballot as propositions 1A through 1E, the plan would authorize borrowing for a host of improvements to the state's roads, bridges, schools, ports and levees.
Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez (D-Los Angeles) praised voters for backing the bipartisan effort by lawmakers and the governor to shore up California's aging infrastructure.
"When the Legislature and the governor work together to solve people's problems, the voters stand with us," Nunez said. "This is a huge investment in California's future. It will continue to give California the competitive edge."
Two other money-raising measures -- one seeking to tax oil companies to promote the production of alternative fuels, the other aiming to expand healthcare funding through a tax hike on cigarettes -- appeared headed for defeat.
Among the plethora of propositions facing voters this fall, they were the most passionately contested, targets of noisy advertising campaigns and heavy spending.
Topping the spending charts was the oil industry, which invested a record amount -- at least $94 million -- against Proposition 87. The measure sought to hit oil companies with billions of dollars in new taxes to promote the production of alternative fuels.
Big money was spent in support of the measure as well, with Los Angeles developer and movie producer Stephen Bing pumping nearly $50 million into the cause. Former President Clinton, meanwhile, had led a gaggle of A-list celebrities in promoting the measure at events around the state.
Proposition 86 sparked an equally vigorous fight, with the tobacco industry spending lavishly against the proposal to more than quadruple the tax on cigarettes. The measure had broad public support in polls earlier in the year, but it dwindled as tobacco companies boosted their campaign spending.
