Marijuana Policy Project

HELENA, MONTANA — In a letter sent to the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) yesterday, Montana Commissioner of Political Practices Gordon Higgins asked ONDCP Deputy Director Scott Burns to provide information as to why ONDCP believes it is exempt from state campaign finance laws.

Higgins' letter was prompted by a complaint filed Feb. 24 by the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP), which had supported I-148, the medical marijuana initiative passed overwhelmingly by voters in November. Burns traveled to Montana on October 6, 2004, to campaign against the measure, but failed to report campaign expenditures as required by Montana law. At a stop in Billings, Burns was quoted by the Associated Press as saying that passage of I-148 would "help our kids get addicted to drugs." The Helena Independent Record headlined its story about Burns' trip, "Drug Czar Stumps Against I-148."

Higgins' letter notes that ONDCP has previously claimed exemption from Nevada's campaign finance laws. It asks Burns for "information about the scope of your responsibilities as Deputy Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy that may lead you to claim immunity," to be provided in writing by March 23.

"We are pleased that Commissioner Higgins has moved promptly to follow up on our complaint," said Steve Fox, MPP director of government relations. "Montana law unmistakably requires those who campaign for or against an initiative to disclose their expenditures, and U.S. Supreme Court precedent indicates that states may require the federal government to make such disclosures without violating the Constitution. We fully reported all of our expenditures in support of I-148, and it is only fair that federal officials who spent tax dollars campaigning against it should disclose what they spent as well."

Higgins' complete letter to Burns is available at /WarOnDrugCzar/complaints.html.

With more than 17,000 members and 150,000 e-mail subscribers nationwide, the Marijuana Policy Project is the largest marijuana policy reform organization in the United States. MPP works to minimize the harm associated with marijuana — both the consumption of marijuana and the laws that are intended to prohibit such use. MPP believes that the greatest harm associated with marijuana is imprisonment. For more information, see http://www.MarijuanaPolicy.org.

####