Florida Marijuana Legalization Campaign Announces $15 Million In New Funding From Other Companies Joining Trulieve-Led Effort

The Florida campaign behind a marijuana legalization initiative that will be on the November ballot has announced that it’s 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.

Two days after the Florida Supreme Court cleared the initiative for ballot placement, rejecting the state attorney general’s constitutional challenge, Smart & Safe Florida said on Wednesday that it’s secured the new funding from donors “committed to helping ensure victory this fall.”

“We are not only pleased that the court has agreed to move this initiative forward, but we are also thrilled to announce a strong alliance of committed donors to the effort,” campaign chairman David Bellamy said in a press release.

The multi-state operator Trulieve has been the primary financial supporter of the campaign, donating about $40 million as advocates worked to collect more than one million signatures to qualify for ballot placement. Now it’s being joined by at least six additional marijuana businesses for the last phase of the campaign.

Those companies are: Verano Holdings, Curaleaf Holdings, AYR Wellness, Cresco Labs, Green Thumb Industries and INSA.

https://t.co/dHu5AtpR1V

— Smart & Safe Florida (@SmartandSafeFl) April 3, 2024

“As we move into the next phase of campaigning, we are grateful to have the support of our donors,” the campaign said. “We have come a long way, but our work has only just begun.”

Kim Rivers, CEO of Trulieve, applauded the new campaign donors, thanking them for “stepping up” and “joining the fight to increase access to cannabis for adults in Florida.”

I get by with a little help from my friends… Thank you @veranobrands@curaleaffl@GTIGrows@crescolabs@AYRWellness@InsaCannabis for stepping up to donate to @SmartandSafeFl and joining the fight to increase access to cannabis for adults in Florida. 🙌

We all say #YesOn3!…

— Kim Rivers (@rivers_kim) April 3, 2024

If approved, the measure would change the state Constitution to allow existing medical cannabis companies in the state like Trulieve 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 21 and older 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.

Separately, economic analysts from the Florida legislature and the office of Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) 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. And 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.

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.

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

“Allows adults 21 years or older to possess, purchase, or use marijuana products and marijuana accessories for non-medical personal consumption by smoking, ingestion, or otherwise; allows Medical Marijuana Treatment Centers, and other state licensed entities, to acquire, cultivate, process, manufacture, sell, and distribute such products and accessories. Applies to Florida law; does not change, or immunize violations of, federal law. Establishes possession limits for personal use. Allows consistent legislation. Defines terms. Provides effective date.”

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.

While DeSantis opposes the reform—and pledged not to federally decriminalize marijuana if elected president when he was running—he predicted in January that Florida voters will get a chance to decide on the issue this time.

That said, the governor has raised concerns about cannabis legalization in Florida, saying there could be a “big problem” with some of the provisions of the initiative and complaining that letting adults legally consume cannabis could impact businesses and communities—including as the result of odor.

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.

For his part, DeSantis also weighed in on another relevant cannabis policy issue recently when he said that he doesn’t believe the federal gun ban for state-legal marijuana consumers is constitutional. Florida’s former agriculture commissioner brought a lawsuit against the Biden administration over the rule, though the governor did not get involved.

Meanwhile, 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.

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Photo courtesy of Mike Latimer.