A wave of marijuana legalization has been sweeping across the U.S., and its genesis can be traced to Colorado and Washington approving marijuana legalization initiatives way back in 2012. In each biennial election that followed, additional states followed through with their own marijuana legalization initiatives, and experts believe 2020 will be a landmark year for marijuana.
Marijuana advocates believe there are currently 26 states where voters might have to vote on marijuana initiatives, either for full-scale recreational legalization, legalization of medical cannabis or decriminalization. Let’s look at 6 states that might table marijuana legalization ballot initiatives in 2020.
In 2020, voters will vote on an initiative dubbed ‘Smart & Safe Arizona’ led by a group of Arizona medical cannabis companies. It will allow people 21 and older to possess, consume, cultivate and purchase cannabis from licensed retailers. Individuals with prior marijuana convictions could have their records expunged, and some tax revenue from legal sales will be used to invest in communities disproportionately affected by prohibition.
The fight for legalization in Florida started in 2016 when voters approved a constitutional amendment to legalize medical cannabis. An advocacy group called Make It Legal Florida is seeking to push it further. It is working to place a full-scale marijuana legalization measure for the 2020 ballot that would allow adults 21 and over to possess up to 2.5 ounces of cannabis. It is backed by cannabis companies like MedMen and Parallel.
The Idaho Cannabis Coalition is pushing a proposal that would allow approved patients and their caregivers to possess up to four ounces of marijuana, and it would establish a system of licensed and regulated growers, processors, testers and retail dispensaries. The organizers would have to collect 55,057 valid signatures from voters for the measure to qualify for the ballot.
Mississippi activists have already filed a measure for medical cannabis for 2020’s ballot, along with what they say is more than enough signatures for the measure to qualify. If approved, it will allow patients with any of 22 conditions including chronic pain and PTSD to possess up to 2.5 ounces of cannabis per 14-day period.
Missouri voters already approved a medical cannabis measure back in 2018, and activists are looking to expand upon it with broader marijuana legalization. Several proposed measures to end prohibition have been filed with the secretary of state. Still, they lack significant push, and they need groups with enough funding to get them off the ground.
Oklahoma voters approved a medical cannabis ballot last year during a midterm primary election. Activists are now looking to expand the measure with a broader marijuana legalization initiative this year. The effort is backed by the National New Approach PAC, and it will have to collect 178,000 signatures from registered voters to qualify for the ballot. The measure would allow people 21 and over to possess, cultivate and purchase cannabis from licensed retailers.
These six are just a tip of the U.S. states in which ballot measures aimed at reforming cannabis laws are planned. Experts believe that such grassroots changes give the marijuana industry, including entities like HTC Extraction Systems (TSX.V: HTC) (OTCQB: HTPRF) and VIVO Cannabis Inc. (TSX.V: VIVO) (OTCQX: VVCIF), hope that federal reforms could soon happen once most of the country legalizes cannabis in some form.
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