Cal. Const., art. XIII B, § 9

“Appropriations subject to limitation” for each entity of government do not include:

(a) Appropriations for debt service.

(b) Appropriations required to comply with mandates of the courts or the federal government which, without discretion, require an expenditure for additional services or which unavoidably make the provision of existing services more costly.

(c) Appropriations of any special district which existed on January 1, 1978, and which did not as of the 1977–78 fiscal year levy an ad valorem tax on property in excess of 12 1/2 cents per $100 of assessed value; or the appropriations of any special district then existing or thereafter created by a vote of the people, which is totally funded by other than the proceeds of taxes.

(d) Appropriations for all qualified capital outlay projects, as defined by the Legislature.

(e) Appropriations of revenue which are derived from any of the following:

(1) That portion of the taxes imposed on motor vehicle fuels for use in motor vehicles upon public streets and highways at a rate of more than nine cents ($0.09) per gallon.

(2) Sales and use taxes collected on that increment of the tax specified in paragraph (1).

(3) That portion of the weight fee imposed on commercial vehicles which exceeds the weight fee imposed on those vehicles on January 1, 1990.