One in a series of stories explaining the measures on the May 19 special election ballot

Child care worker Sue Sparks was too busy minding a tiny charge at her home in Sacramento to join a recent protest against potential cuts to her profession.

"I need you to sit down, and if you don't like your carrots, just leave them," she said.

But Sparks made it clear she was just as upset as those publicly objecting to Proposition 1D and other May 19 special ballot measures.

Proposition 1D and a set of five other measures were hatched in February when the pressure of an unprecedented state budget deficit led California's top legislators and the governor to strike a deal.

Part of that deal, along with cuts and new taxes, involves turning again to California's ballot measure system to solve the mess – and in the process undoing measures of the past.

This time, voters must decide whether to divert money from locally controlled social programs that they created to state services for children.

If they agree, Proposition 1D would take money from local preschool funds, which in Sacramento provide small subsidies for Sparks' child care center. Proposition 1E would tap into dollars for communities' mental health services.

A previous measure, Proposition 10 of 1998, imposed a 50-cent tax on cigarettes to finance early childhood development, 80 percent of it at the discretion of 58 county "First Five" commissions. The state will collect an estimated $500 million next fiscal year.

Proposition 1D is targeting about $2.5 billion in unspent revenue sitting in the coffers of First Five commissions, who argue that the money is earmarked for long-range plans.

Proposition 1E is targeting money collected under another voter-approved measure, Proposition 63 of 2004, which imposed a 1 percent tax on Californians earning more than $1 million to help pay for local mental health services. Annual revenue has ranged from $900 million to $1.5 billion.

Supporters say the need for local services dates back 40 years, when state mental hospitals were closed during Ronald Reagan's governorship.

Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento, was a proud author of Proposition 63, and says he remains committed to improving mental health services. Yet Steinberg finds himself up against a wall of opposition from people he usually counts as allies: social workers and mental health activists.

"I hate this choice. I didn't make this choice with any happiness," Steinberg said of his decision to back Propositions 1D and 1E.

But if voters decline to divert the childhood development money, he said, it could mean dropping state cash aid for 98,000 poor children.

The propositions were the brainchild of legislative Republicans, who argued that tapping the local money made more sense than raising taxes.

As a leader, Steinberg said he felt compelled to place programs he supports on the table during negotiations, which also resulted in tax increases.

"Given his commitment to mental health, it must have been incredibly painful for Steinberg to do that," said Tim Hodson, executive director of the Center for California Studies at California State University, Sacramento.

Voters also must reflect on their tendency to vote, by ballot initiative, for programs that lock in funding, Hodson said.

The ballot battle has given Republicans long skeptical of First Five spending a chance to push for voters to let legislators seize money they think is wasted. Supporters of First Five counter that critics never supported the tax, and now want to grab the money from local communities.

The First Five commissions are charged with financing early educational activities, with an emphasis on low-income children, who often start kindergarten with fewer skills.

"The Proposition 1D funds are some of the most cost-effective spending there is," said Moira Kenney, statewide programs director of the First Five Association.

Testing already shows that third-grade reading scores of kids who benefited from First Five-funded programs are higher than others, she said.

Call Susan Ferriss, Bee Capitol Bureau, (916) 321-1267.