I took a quick look at filings by groups playing in the efforts to put constitutional amendments on the ballot.
MARIJUANA
Responsible Growth Arkansas, an industry-backed group seeking to legalize marijuana for adults, has spent $3.3 million putting the measure on the ballot some $3.4 million raised. Its petitions have been certified but it is appealing the rejection of its ballot title by the state Board of Election Commissioners to the Arkansas Supreme Court.
Safe and Secure Communities. This group was formed to defeat a marijuana amendment. It was formed in July by Michael McCauley of Downers Grove, Ill., vice president of a marketing firm, and this month it got its first infusion of cash — $250,000 from poultry magnate Ronald Cameron of Little Rock, a deep pockets conservative contributor to Republican causes.
CASINOS
Fair Play Arkansas 2022, the effort underwritten by the Choctaw Nation to prevent a casino in Pope County, reports having spent almost $3.6 million of the $3.8 million raised to put a repeal amendment on the ballot. Its ballot title has been rejected by the state Board of Election Commissioners and the secretary of state said its petition drive fell short. It has not filed an appeal of either decision and this effort is likely dead.
The Arkansas Tourism Alliance, a group backed by the Cherokee Nation to fight the repeal campaign, spent $1.3 million to discourage people from signing the repeal petitions. The Cherokee Nation holds a permit for a casino in…
