Reports Show Spending to Get Questions on Ballot

July 6, 2022, 5 p.m. ·

Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commissioni campaign finance reporting form
Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commissioni campaign finance reporting form

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Heading towards Thursday’s deadline to file initiative petition signatures, three groups have reported significant spending to try and get proposals on the November ballot.

By far the two most expensive campaigns, according to reports filed with the Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commission, are those being run by supporters of requiring people to show a photo ID to vote, and to raise the minimum wage.

Citizens for Voter ID reported receiving $1.7 million in the period ending June 25. Of that, $1.5 million came from Marlene Ricketts, the mother of Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts and a frequent contributor to Republicans and conservative causes. The group reported spending $505,000, including $487,000 for collecting signatures, and had $1.2 million cash on hand.

Raise the Wage Nebraska wants to increase the state’s $9 per hour minimum wage, to $15 an hour by 2026. It reported receiving $1.3 million in contributions and spending $1.4 million, including at least $565,000 for collecting signatures. Their largest single reported contributor, of $634,000, was the Sixteen Thirty Fund of Washington, DC. - described by the campaign spending watchdog group Open Secrets as “an expansive liberal ‘dark money’ network,” referring to political spending where the source of money is not disclosed.

The only other initiative campaign to report spending to get on the ballot was supporters of legalizing medical cannabis. They reported receiving $186,000, spending $146,000, including more than $17,000 on gathering signatures. Their largest reported cash contributions, $12,500 apiece, were from the Missouri Hemp Improvement Company, which describes itself as a transportation company, and BMD Smithville LLC, also of Missouri, which runs medical marijuana dispensaries.