Florida Marijuana Legalization Campaign Recruits Military Veterans For Media And Voter Outreach

The campaign behind a Florida ballot measure to legalize marijuana is reaching out to veterans in an effort to build voter support for the the reform, which will appear on the state’s ballot this November.

In an email to supporters Friday, the campaign, Smart and Safe Florida, said it’s hoping to “grow one of the many coalitions we are building in Florida: Veterans.”

“Our goal is to raise awareness among voters about the importance of cannabis as a safer alternative to synthetic opioids for treating PTSD and related conditions among veterans,” wrote the campaign, explaining that organizers are “looking to engage with veterans across the state of Florida to support our cause.”

The email includes a link to sign up for the campaign’s veterans’ coalition and volunteer to share opinions “publicly, either via newspaper and/or online publications” or “on camera to be shared with voters through our campaign platforms.”

“Nobody has done more in laying it on the line to protect our individual liberties and freedoms than our veterans,” the campaign’s email says. “As most of you know, many veterans and veteran groups have publicly spoken out about their support for adult access to cannabis.”

Floridians would need to pass the medical marijuana industry-backed initiative with at least 60 percent of the vote for it to become law. New polling released by USA Today/Ipsos this week suggests that might be a tall order, however: The survey found that 56 percent of Florida registered voters and 49 percent of Florida adults overall back the cannabis measure.

If approved, the measure would change the state Constitution to allow existing medical cannabis companies in the state, such as Trulieve, the campaign’s main financial contributor, to begin selling marijuana to all adults over 21. It contains a provision that would allow—but not require—lawmakers to take steps toward the approval of additional businesses. Home cultivation by consumers would not be allowed under the proposal as drafted.

Adults would be able to purchase and possess up to one ounce of cannabis, only five grams of which could be marijuana concentrate products. The three-page measure also omits equity provisions favored by advocates, such as expungements or other relief for people with prior cannabis convictions.

Economic analysts from the Florida legislature and the office of Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), who has called the proposal “radical,” estimate that the marijuana legalization initiative would generate between $195.6 million and $431.3 million in new sales tax revenue annually if voters enact it. Those figures could increase considerably if lawmakers opted to impose an additional excise tax on cannabis transactions that’s similar to the ones in place in other legalized states.

Nearly all of the campaign’s financial backing has come from existing medical marijuana businesses, predominantly multi-state operators. Last week, the Florida Division of Elections (DOE) released the campaign finance activity report from the first quarter of the year, showing nearly $15 million in new contributions.

Trulieve, the main financial backer of the initiative, led the pack again with $9.225 million in donations during the first quarter. That follows the company previously contributing about $40 million as advocates worked to collect more than one million signatures to qualify for ballot placement.

DeSantis, for his part, has predicted voters will reject the marijuana initiative in November. He’s argued it will “reduce the quality of life” in the state.

Meanwhile Trulieve’s CEO said earlier this week that the reform could actually “improve quality of life” for residents.

Here’s what the Smart & Safe Florida marijuana legalization initiative would accomplish:

• Adults 21 and older could purchase and possess up to three ounces of cannabis for personal use. The cap for marijuana concentrates would be five grams.
• Medical cannabis dispensaries could “acquire, cultivate, process, manufacture, sell, and distribute marijuana products and marijuana accessories to adults for personal use.”
• The legislature would be authorized—but not required—to approve additional entities that are not currently licensed cannabis dispensaries.
• The initiative specifies that nothing in the proposal prevents the legislature from “enacting laws that are consistent with this amendment.”
• The amendment further clarifies that nothing about the proposal “changes federal law,” which seems to be an effort to avoid past legal challenges about misleading ballot language.
• There are no provisions for home cultivation, expungement of prior records or social equity.
• The measure would take effect six months following approval by voters.

Here’s the full text of the ballot title and summary:

The Florida Chamber of Commerce released a poll in January showing that a marijuana legalization initiative that may appear on the November ballot enjoys majority support from likely voters—but not quite enough to meet the state’s steep 60 percent threshold for passage.

Other previous polls have found that voters are well-positioned to pass the legalization initiative with more than enough support. For example, the University of North Florida put out a survey in December that showed 67 percent of voters back the proposal.

Meanwhile, there’s significant interest in how former President Donald Trump, a Florida resident, will vote on the cannabis initiative, and whether he will publicly support or oppose it.

Also, a Florida bill that sought to cap THC potency if voters approved the legalization initiative at the ballot died this session, much to the relief of cannabis advocates and stakeholders.

Legislation to restrict consumable hemp products and ban delta-8 THC was approved by lawmakers and awaits DeSantis’s action.

Separately, a House subcommittee recently advanced a medical marijuana bill that would waive patient registration and renewal fees for service-disabled military veterans.

Despite his opposition to the initiative, DeSantis, the former GOP presidential candidate who dropped out of the race in January, previously accurately predicted that the state’s highest court would ultimately allow the measure on November’s ballot.

Attorney General Ashley Moody (R) successfully petitioned justices to prevent an earlier 2022 legalization initiative from receiving voter consideration.

DeSantis also weighed in on another relevant cannabis policy issue earlier this year when, while still a presidential candidate, he said that he doesn’t believe the federal gun ban for state-legal marijuana consumers is constitutional. Florida’s former agriculture commission, Nikki Fried, brought a lawsuit against the Biden administration over the rule, though the governor did not get involved.

Prior to dropping out, DeSantis also said that if elected president, he would “respect the decisions that states make” on marijuana legalization despite his personal view that the reform has a “negative impact.”

While DeSantis doubts the cannabis initiative will receive the requisite 60 percent of the vote at the upcoming election, the Smart & Safe Florida campaign behind the measure is optimistic. And they announced last week that they’ve raised an additional $15 million from a variety of major cannabis companies as it gears up for an effort to raise awareness about the measure among voters.

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Photo courtesy of Chris Wallis // Side Pocket Images.