Judge Strikes Down Florida Welfare Drug Test Law

Happy holidays, indeed! First Uruguayan President Mujica give us a Christmas present by signing his country's law legalizing marijuana commerce (no surprise there, really), and now, a federal judge throws invites us to welcome the new year with a ruling throwing out Florida Gov. Rick Scott's (R) welfare drug testing law.

In a ruling out of Orlando today, US District Court Judge Mary Scriven permanently halted enforcement of the law, agreeing with an earlier court finding that "there is nothing inherent in the condition of being impoverished that supports the conclusion that there is a concrete danger that impoverished individuals are prone to drug use...."

The law required anyone applying for welfare benefits to undergo a drug test without any particularized suspicion that he or she was using drugs. The federal courts have been loath to okay suspicionless drug testing, with a few notable exceptions for workers in public safety positions and some school kids.

The case is Lebron v. Florida Department of Children and Families. We'll have more on it later.

Oh, and the never-say-die Gov. Scott says he will appeal.