For Immediate Release: November 1, 2024
ICYMI: State Government Spends $50M in Taxpayer Dollars on Political Propaganda Against Amendment 3
(Orlando, FL) – In case you missed it, while Floridians are rallying together to expand their individual freedoms and gain the same basic right to safe, lab-tested recreational marijuana as Americans already enjoy in 24 states and D.C., the state government has stolen more than $50 million from Florida taxpayers to spend on political propaganda on TV, radio, digital, streaming and billboards.
More than 13,000 TV ads and more than 5,000 radio ads have already aired at the taxpayer’s expense, and we’re just now learning where those funds have come from. The first $4 million to be cut from public programs came from opioid settlement funds aimed at helping those who are struggling with opioid addiction, an unfortunate irony when we know access to safe, legal marijuana reduces opioid use and opioid deaths.
Read More About the Government’s Misuse of Taxpayer Dollars:
Florida Phoenix: Bipartisan Group Blasts DeSantis for Using Taxpayer Money to Fight Amendment 3
“No matter where you stand on this issue, this is still a democracy. We do not spend taxpayer dollars in advance of a political issue,” said Sarasota Republican state Sen. Joe Gruters on a Zoom conference call organized by Safe & Smart Florida, the advocacy group behind Amendment 3. “Tax dollars are meant to be spent on our police, schools, roads, and other public programs that make our state great, not political agendas.”
Forbes: DeSantis Uses Opioid Settlement Funds For Ads Against Legalizing Weed
The administration of Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis is using opioid settlement money to fund ads urging voters to reject a ballot initiative to legalize recreational marijuana, according to a report from the Miami Herald. State records reveal that Florida Department of Children and Families spent $4 million last month to pay a marketing firm for an “advertising campaign aimed at educating Floridian families and youth about the dangers of marijuana, opioid, and drug use.”
Politico: DeSantis’ war on ballot measures ignites fury in Florida: ‘This is still a democracy’
Gov. Ron DeSantis is using every lever at his disposal to defeat two November ballot measures that would legalize cannabis and restore access to abortions in Florida.
The all-encompassing effort has drawn in state agencies ranging from the one that oversees elections to the one that builds roads. The Republican governor and his administration have openly campaigned against the amendments during events organized by his official office. And they’ve spent taxpayer money on ads warning voters about the dangers of marijuana and pushing back on the abortion amendment, which would overturn the state’s six-week ban.
“We have data to support $50 million being spent on this ad campaign. I mean, that’s more than half of what we spent on Visit Florida to drive tourism as our largest economic driver for the state, and this is all for the ideology and position of just a few people,” Pizzo said.
USA Today Network – Florida: Two Florida lawmakers decry DeSantis-backed anti-Amendment 3 marijuana ads
“If private individuals and private companies want to say no to (the amendment), absolutely, I understand that,” said Morgan & Morgan law firm founder John Morgan, who’s appeared in ads promoting the measure and was a driving force behind Florida’s previously-passed medical marijuana amendment. “We’ve reached a whole new level where we’re taking, robbing, stealing taxpayer money.”
Orlando Sentinel: ‘Take your hands off our money.’ State-funded ad campaign against abortion, marijuana ballot initiatives draws fire
“We, the taxpayers, have to say, ‘This is wrong. This shouldn’t be going on. Take your hands off our money,” said Morgan, who spearheaded past ballot initiatives that legalized medical marijuana and raised the minimum wage in Florida.
Marijuana Moment: Bipartisan Florida Senators Blast DeSantis Over Use of Taxpayer and Opioid Settlement Dollars to Fund Anti-Marijuana Ads Ahead of Legalization Vote
Gruters, for his part, stressed that while he and Pizzo might be on “different political sides,” their agreement on the need for cannabis reform “shows you that this issue shows no real political boundaries.”
“This is a bipartisan issue, and I think at the end of the day, we’ll be able to regulate this in a way where we can make do this the Florida way. We do this the right way, and we’re going to make this a big win for Florida,” the senator said. “But no matter where you stand on an issue, this is still a democracy. And in a democracy, we do not spend taxpayer dollars in advance of a political issue.”
Florida Times Union Column: Fighting abortion and pot, DeSantis peddles Bizarro World version of Florida
DeSantis has also recently taken to telling voters that marijuana possession is no big deal.
“Not a single person is in jail for this,” he said at a taxpayer-sponsored campaign event this week.
This is accurate if you ignore the thousands of Floridians in places like Miami-Dade who in fact do get arrested on minor marijuana charges, resulting in ruined lives and a profound waste of taxpayer resources. Police also routinely cite the smell of marijuana as a reason to escalate traffic stops.
Miami Herald Letters to the Editor: DeSantis is using our money to fight abortion and marijuana
Gov. Ron DeSantis and his cronies are spending millions of taxpayer money to advocate against Amendments 3 and 4. He has been shameless in promoting unconstitutional laws that are usually overturned by the courts, again at our expense.
These people must know that these unconscionable and unconstitutional actions won’t hold water, but they do it anyway. Meanwhile, essential programs for disabled children and other worthy programs lack funds. The only way to hold these people accountable is to make them repay the public funds they have wasted. Unfortunately, there is no law that will make them do that and none will ever be passed.
Rolling Stone: DeSantis Spends Taxpayer Money to Warn About ‘Legalized Marijuana,’ Defend Abortion Ban
Conservative Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is pulling out all the stops to oppose ballot measures to restore abortion access and legalize cannabis in the state — spending millions in taxpayer dollars on TV ad campaigns designed to undercut both measures.
For more information about Smart & Safe Florida and the campaign to legalize adult use marijuana in Florida, please visit www.smartandsafeflorida.com.
