The state Executive Ethics Board fined Lieutenant Governor Brad Owen $7,000 for illegally spending taxpayers’ dollars to oppose a 1997 statewide drug reform initiative, The Seattle Times reported last week.
“Federal law prohibits state officials from using public funds to influence the outcome of an initiative,” NORML Foundation Executive Director Allen St. Pierre said. “Lieutenant Governor Owen used taxpayer moneys in 1997 and 1998 to oppose initiatives legalizing medical marijuana. His actions clearly undermined the democratic process.”
The ethics board contends that Owen used public employees, equipment, federal grant money, and his own working hours to illegally campaign against Initiative 685, “The Drug Medicalization and Prevention Act of 1997.” The initiative sought to legalize the medical use of marijuana, and mandated alternative sentencing for non-violent drug offenders. Voters rejected the measure by a vote of 60 to 40 percent.
Drug reform proponents allege that Owen also misused federal funds in 1998 to oppose Initiative 692. Months before the election, Owen’s office received approximately $200,000 in federal moneys from the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) to fund a statewide anti-drug campaign focusing chiefly on the alleged dangers of marijuana. The grant also helped pay for the establishment of an anti-medical marijuana website. Despite Owen’s efforts, 59 percent of voters backed the initiative, which became state law on December 3.
“The fine against Owen should put all elected officials and anti-drug bureaucrats, from Drug Czar Barry McCaffrey to local sheriffs or narcotic officers, on notice,” St. Pierre said. “Public funds may not be used to influence public opinion in advance of an election or initiative. It is hard to imagine a more repugnant and threatening specter than a government willing to spend taxpayer’s dollars to actively campaign against free elections.”
For more information, please contact either Allen St. Pierre of The NORML Foundation @ (202) 483-8751 or visit the website MarijuanaNews at: http://www.marijuananews.com/.