Biggest contributor to N.J. marijuana vote effort is better known for killing weeds

October 15, 2020
AggregatedNews
New Jersey
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Who’s funding the effort to legalize cannabis for recreational use in New Jersey?

It’s not the Big Marijuana companies.

The largest contributor to the Garden State’s legalization drive is a lawn care company: Scotts Miracle-Gro, a firm best-known for grass seed, turf builder, and eradicating weeds.

The second largest backer is the American Civil Liberties Union of N.J.

Scotts has ponied up more than $800,000 so far to promote the ballot measure that would approve a constitutional amendment to legalize marijuana for adult use, according to a report issued Wednesday by the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission (NJ ELEC), which tracks election spending.

Scotts contributed $700,000 to the pro-marijuana political action committee, Building Strong Communities Action Fund, according to NJ ELEC. The company also gave an additional $100,000 to NJ Can 2020, a group promoting legalization as a way to address social and racial injustice. NJ Can 2020 is closely affiliated with the ACLU.

The ACLU-NJ itself donated about $323,500 to NJ Can 2020.

The only organized group opposed to the measure, Don”t Let NJ Go to Pot, has raised less than $10,000.

Total spending in New Jersey — pro and con — amounts to a fraction of other states’, totaling a mere $1.3 million, so far, said Jeff Brindle, executive director of NJ ELEC. [Read more at The Philadelphia Inquirer]

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