98.6% of the money behind Massachusetts' marijuana sales repeal came from one Virginia group, state filings show

One Virginia-based group has supplied about 98.6 percent of the money raised by the only committee campaigning for Massachusetts Question 8, the Nov. 3 ballot measure that would end retail sales of adult-use marijuana in the state, according to campaign finance reports filed with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance (OCPF).

The Coalition for a Healthy Massachusetts, Inc., the sole registered committee supporting Question 8, reported about $3.78 million in total receipts from its formation in September 2025 through Oct. 15, 2026, across its five scheduled reports. Of that, $3,730,000 came from SAM Action Inc., listed with an address in Alexandria, Va., according to the committee's OCPF filings. The latest of those contributions, $250,000, is dated Oct. 14 on the committee's Oct. 20 report.

The Fall River Reporter examined the same filings in a story published Oct. 25, using figures through Oct. 1. At that point, the outlet reported, SAM Action had given $3,480,000 of the coalition's $3,531,625, or 98.5 percent. The Oct. 14 contribution raises SAM Action's total and its share slightly.

Who is behind SAM Action

SAM Action is the political arm of Smart Approaches to Marijuana, an anti-legalization advocacy group based in Alexandria, Va., the Fall River Reporter reported. The group was founded in 2013 by former U.S. Rep. Patrick Kennedy and drug-policy analyst Kevin Sabet, who is its president and CEO, according to the outlet.

SAM Action is a 501(c)(4) "social welfare" nonprofit, the Fall River Reporter reported. The coalition discloses SAM Action as the source of its money, as state law requires, but SAM Action itself is not required to disclose its own donors and does not, according to the outlet. That kind of spending is legal for a nonprofit of its type and is often called "dark money," the outlet noted.

SAM says its money comes mainly from individuals and families who have seen marijuana's harms firsthand, along with family foundations and speaking fees, and that it takes no money from the alcohol, tobacco, opioid or prison industries, the Fall River Reporter reported. The outlet said there is no way to confirm that, and that Sabet has said the group keeps donors private to protect families from harassment. The outlet also cited New England Public Media as reporting that it found no evidence connecting SAM or Question 8 to the alcohol or tobacco industries.

What the filings show

According to the Fall River Reporter's review of the filings, SAM Action made five contributions through Oct. 1: $750,000 on Sept. 23, 2025; $800,000 on Oct. 8, 2025; $875,000 on May 8, 2026; $750,000 on July 15, 2026; and $305,000 on Sept. 29, 2026. The coalition's Oct. 5 OCPF report lists the $305,000 Sept. 29 contribution, and its Oct. 20 report lists the additional $250,000 on Oct. 14.

The only other organization to give, the outlet reported, was Americans Against Legalizing Marijuana, of Carmichael, Calif., which contributed $50,000 on Sept. 15. The Fall River Reporter counted $1,625 from Massachusetts residents through Oct. 1. The Oct. 20 report adds one more itemized individual contribution of $200 from a Longmeadow resident and $10 in unitemized receipts.

The coalition has spent heavily as the vote nears. Its Oct. 20 report shows $927,172.10 in expenditures from Oct. 2 to Oct. 15, including TV and digital advertising placements, leaving $154,982.71 in cash on hand. OCPF's ballot question summary lists the committee's total spending at $3,626,852.29 since it formed: $1,440,342.79 in 2025 and $2,186,509.50 in 2026.

The opposition's money

Four committees are registered with OCPF to oppose Question 8. The largest, the Committee to Protect Cannabis Regulation, which runs the "No on 8: Stop the Repeal" campaign, reported $608,045.01 in receipts and $1,592,340.38 in expenditures for Oct. 2 to Oct. 15, according to its OCPF filer page. OCPF's ballot question summary lists its 2026 spending at $2,628,567.45, plus $175,863.44 in in-kind contributions, with $169,314.43 cash on hand as of its latest report.

The Marijuana Herald, reviewing the Oct. 20 reports, said the two main campaigns spent a combined $2,519,512 in those two weeks, more than half of their 2026 spending, and had a combined $324,297 left as of Oct. 15.

The opposition committee's biggest contributors are cannabis businesses, the Fall River Reporter reported, including INSA ($265,000), Ascend Wellness Holdings ($250,000) and Vireo Health ($125,000), along with Evergreen Strategies LLC and the Retailers Association of Massachusetts ($100,000 each). Ascend is headquartered in New York City and Vireo in Minneapolis, the outlet noted. A newer opposition committee, the Coalition for Responsible Cannabis Policy, reported $102,076.13 cash on hand, according to OCPF's summary.

Contributions received after Oct. 15 are not included in these figures and will show up in later filings.

What Question 8 would do

According to the official summary in the Secretary of the Commonwealth's 2026 voter information, Question 8 would repeal the laws that legalize, regulate and tax retail sales of adult-use marijuana. Adults 21 and older could still possess up to 1 ounce, including no more than 5 grams of concentrate, and could give up to that amount to another adult. Possession of more than 1 ounce up to 2 ounces would bring a $100 civil penalty and forfeiture.

Existing adult-use businesses could apply on an expedited basis to become medical marijuana dispensaries and sell their remaining adult-use inventory to medical dispensaries. The Cannabis Control Commission would remain but would regulate only the medical market. The law would take effect Jan. 1, 2028.

The state's fiscal statement says adult-use sales raised about $280 million in state revenue and $50 million in local revenue in fiscal year 2025, and that repeal would reduce those receipts.

What each side says

In the official voter guide, supporters argue that marijuana is now the most common drug found in fatal car crashes in Massachusetts and that taxpayers spend $4.50 dealing with the effects of legalization for every $1 in tax revenue. The Fall River Reporter noted that the argument does not cite a source and that the same ratio appeared in a 2018 Colorado study that industry groups criticized as not peer-reviewed.

Opponents argue in the guide that repeal would push marijuana back to the illicit market without testing or labeling safeguards, lead to more arrests, and shut down hundreds of small businesses. Ryan Dominguez, who chairs the Stop the Repeal campaign, has said the debate was manufactured by SAM's spending, according to the Fall River Reporter.

Dominguez and Bertha Madras, a lead supporter of Question 8, debated the measure in a 27-minute program hosted by WBZ-TV political analyst Jon Keller and posted by CBS Boston on Oct. 25.

What's next

Early voting is underway, and Election Day is Nov. 3. If Question 8 passes, Massachusetts would become the first state to repeal legal recreational sales, the Fall River Reporter noted, a decade after voters approved them with about 54 percent of the vote in 2016. The outlet cited a September University of New Hampshire poll in which 71 percent of voters said they planned to vote no. Fundraising and spending totals do not decide an election, and they say nothing about the merits of either side.

This report summarizes public campaign finance records and news coverage. It is not legal advice.