A statewide advisory board was not told that Gov. Ron DeSantis’ office directed over $4 million in opioid settlement money to a media campaign opposing a 2024 marijuana legalization ballot initiative, according to the Orlando Sentinel.
Members of the Statewide Council on Opioid Abatement said they have raised questions about the spending for more than a year but have received no answers, according to the Sentinel report.
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The ads, ordered by the Department of Children and Families, coincided with other state-funded anti-marijuana campaigns, and the state spent over $35 million in total to oppose what was known as Amendment 3.
The spending controversy overlaps with a separate, ongoing investigation into the Hope Florida Foundation, a nonprofit tied to first lady Casey DeSantis. That has drawn legislative scrutiny and a grand jury probe.
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