FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 11, 2024
BOISE, IDAHO – Idaho House voted to approve House Bill 613, which would ban commercial advertising of marijuana in the state of Idaho.
Marijuana, which is illegal under federal law but has been legalized in neighboring states, is frequently advertised on Idaho roadside billboards by Oregon and Washington dispensaries.
House Bill 613 is constitutional because commercial speech that promotes unlawful activities receives no First Amendment protections whatsoever.
A statement from Blaine Conzatti, President of Idaho Family Policy Center:
One of the first concerns of state government is promoting the safety, welfare, and sobriety of its citizens.
It’s important to recognize, then, that advertisements which promote unlawful activity also pose a threat to the rule of law and public morality alike. Not only do these advertisements undermine the legal and moral norms established by society through the legislative process, but they also foster criminal behavior as well as the social problems that inevitably follow.
Importantly, this legislation is constitutionally defensible. According to the Supreme Court, commercial speech deserves less protection under the First Amendment than other types of constitutionally protected expression. Specifically, the United States Supreme Court ruled in Central Hudson (1980) that “the government may ban forms of commercial speech related to illegal activity.
This doctrine was also affirmed by the Idaho Supreme Court in State v. Newman (1985), when they upheld a state law that prohibited the advertisement of drug paraphernalia.
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