Group backing recreational pot amendment raises another $314K as Ron DeSantis ramps up attack messaging

Bills to cap pot potency were stamped out. Image via AP.

The political committee sponsoring a ballot initiative that would allow recreational marijuana collected nearly $314,000 in new donations, according to its latest campaign finance filing.

The report, which covered the second week of July, showed that the bulk of new donations to Smart & Safe Florida, which is supporting Amendment 3, came from two companies involved in the marijuana business.

Verano Holdings, which is based in Chicago, donated $250,000. Oregon-based Dutchie gave $50,000. Verano already has 77 medical marijuana dispensaries in Florida and recently just opened new locations in Miami-Dade and Pasco counties.

Verano gave $2.25 million to Smart & Safe Florida in late March. The company website describes Verano as an “active supporter” of the effort to pass Amendment 3.

Smart & Safe Florida has now raised nearly $61.5 million in its effort to pass the initiative. The latest campaign report shows that the political committee, which has already been spending money on TV and radio ads, has $12.6 million in its account that has not been spent. The bulk of Smart & Safe Florida’s donations have come from Trulieve, a medical marijuana company that is already one of the largest operators in the state.

Gov. Ron DeSantis opposes Amendment 3 and this week in Milwaukee went in depth about why, asserting that legalization has failed in Colorado. He also sharply criticized Trulieve, without naming the company, for bankrolling the effort to place Amendment 3 on the ballot.

Meanwhile, companies associated with the hemp industry are expected to help pay for efforts to defeat the amendment. A political committee connected to the Governor received $100,000 from POB Ventures, a Florida company that runs a medical cannabis training institute and a string of hemp-related businesses. 

Patrick O’Brien, the CEO of POB Ventures, told Marijuana Moment that he’s not opposed to allowing recreational marijuana but that he does not like the wording of the initiative on the ballot.

CBS Miami, meanwhile, reported last week that WhatsApp messages show that a network of hemp executives have pledged to donate $5 million to the Republican Party of Florida to help defeat the amendment.