ballot initiatives

The Michigan Legislature has decided to pass on Tuesday, June 5th’s midnight deadline to act on a voter initiative to legalize adult-use cannabis, the Detroit Free Press reports. Senate Republicans had wanted to take up and pass the measure before it was put on November’s ballot in order to immediately amend the language of the […]

According to a Michigan Radio report, advocates from the “Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol” say they are watching closely as the deadline approaches for legislative action on the state’s cannabis legalization issue. Tuesday, June 5th is the deadline for the legislature to decide whether to approve the petition and write it into law or leave […]

Medical cannabis opponents in Utah have filed an emergency motion to block the ballot initiative from November ballots, the Associated Press reports. The plaintiffs of the lawsuit argue that the proposal, organized by the Utah Patients Coalition, would break federal law. The lawsuit, filed by Drug Safe Utah, names Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox as the […]

A Michigan anti-cannabis legalization group has indicated that they would be open to cannabis legalization if the reforms were passed by the Legislature, the Detroit Free Press reports. The Committee to Keep Pot out of Neighborhoods and Schools has conceded that legalization “will be a reality” in the state but hopes legislative action will create […]

The Ohio Ballot Board has certified the ballot initiative to legalize cannabis for recreational use in the state, the Dayton Daily News reports. The group behind the initiative, Ohio Families for Change, now must collect 305,591 valid signatures from 44 of the state’s 88 counties – and, within each county, the group must collect enough signatures […]

A Michigan State University Institute for Public Policy and Social Research poll has found 61 percent support for cannabis legalization in the state, with 34 percent opposed and 5 percent undecided. Cannabis legalization was the only issue on the poll with fewer than 15 percent undecided. Pollsters found support lags among Michiganders 65-and-older. Just 30 […]

Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine has certified that the language for a proposed recreational cannabis ballot initiative is “fair and truthful” – the first step toward putting the issue on the ballot, according to a Cleveland.com report. The proposal moves next to the Ohio Ballot Board which will determine whether the measure is one or […]

Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill has indicated he will vote in favor of the ballot initiative to legalize medical cannabis in Utah, the Deseret News reports. The support comes as Gov. Gary Herbert and the Utah Medical Association strongly oppose the reforms. “This is not about recreational marijuana, that is not what I […]

Republican lawmakers in Michigan are considering tying recreational cannabis legalization to a bill to cut the state’s income tax amid fears that having the issue on November’s ballot will drive voter turnout, especially among young voters who tend to vote Democrat, the Detroit Free Press reports. The Republicans working on the plan to cut the […]

Advocates in Idaho have stopped collecting signatures for the ballot initiative to legalize medical cannabis in the state and the group behind the effort, the Idaho Medical Marijuana Association, has dissolved, according to a Spokesman-Review report. The organization’s president, Tesla Gillespie, said the group wasn’t sufficiently organized or funded to collect enough signatures. Gillespie said […]

Advocates in Oklahoma have received state approval to begin collecting signatures for a ballot initiative asking voters whether to legalize both medical and recreational cannabis in November, according to a KOKH. The measure would add legalization to the state constitution, rather than as a law, which would also need to be codified by the state […]

Michigan voters will have the opportunity to legalize cannabis for adult use this November after the State Board of Canvassers approved the petition launched by the Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol. What’s in the initiative: Create a taxed and regulated recreational cannabis system, allowing adults 21-and-older to possess and consume cannabis. Legalization of industrial […]

The Michigan State Bureau of Elections has recommended that the state Board of Canvassers approve the recreational cannabis use petition by the Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol and put the issue on November ballots. According to the recommendation, the agency determined that the petition contains 277,370 valid signatures. The advocates needed to collect 252,523 […]

The Utah Medical Association has come out in opposition of the ballot initiative to legalize medical cannabis in the state, saying that the initiative’s supporters are “misrepresenting and misappropriating” the position of the medical profession in the state, according to a Salt Lake Tribune report. “This initiative is not about medicine. … Supporters have used images […]

Utah Gov. Gary Herbert will not support the Utah Patients Coalition-led medical cannabis ballot initiative, saying that the legislature’s HB.197 “promotes medical science and public safety in ways absent from [the] initiative petition,” according to a KUTV report. The legislature-approved bill requires the state Department of Agriculture and Food to cultivate and process cannabis for academic […]

Utah voters will likely have a chance to consider legalizing medical cannabis this November, according to a Fox13 report. The Utah Patients Coalition told the station that county clerks have verified 120,000 signatures, while the Lt. Governor’s Office has verified another 117,000 – far exceeding the 160,000 signatures required to put the issue to voters. […]

Advocates in Oklahoma plan to file two petitions this week to begin gathering signatures in an effort to add constitutional amendments for both medical and recreational cannabis legalization in the state, according to a Tulsa World report. Green the Vote President Isaac Caviness said the group is seeking to add the reforms to the state […]

Voters in Cook County, Illinois – which includes Chicago – have approved a non-binding referendum calling on the state to legalize cannabis for recreational use, according to a Chicago Reader report. Voters in the Windy City approved the measure 73 percent to 27 percent and overall Cook County voters approved the referendum 68 percent, KWQC reports. […]

According to an EPIC-MRA poll commissioned by Michigan NORML, 61 percent of voters said they would vote in favor of the ballot question to legalize cannabis use for adults, with 35 percent saying they would reject the proposal. The survey found 45 percent of respondents indicated they would “definitely vote yes” with another 13 percent […]

Detroit, Michigan’s City Council has passed a 180-day moratorium on new medical cannabis licenses and permits, the Detroit Free Press reports. Councilman James Tate, who drafted the resolution, said the moratorium is due to two voter-approved measures meant to relax the city’s industry regulations that, he says, violate the state laws. “This is a cautionary […]

Smart Approaches to Marijuana of Virginia has donated $150,000 to the newly formed Healthy and Productive Michigan organization – a group fighting a potential ballot initiative to legalize cannabis in Michigan, the Detroit News reports. Kevin Sabet, SAM co-founder, indicated this is just the first donation to the prohibitionist group. “Michigan is a priority because […]

Nebraska state Sen. Anna Wishart’s proposal to legalize medical cannabis via a ballot measure to add the reforms to the state constitution has moved to the Legislature Judiciary Committee, and, if approved by lawmakers, the measure could head to voters in November, the Associated Press reports. The proposal has drawn the ire of Assistant Nebraska […]

According to a Utah Policy report, state lawmakers may attempt to stymie activists’ efforts to legalize cannabis for medical use by adopting the same language in the ballot proposal as a bill but including language that would prevent the measure from taking effect until the federal government reclassifies cannabis as a Schedule IV drug. The move […]

Leaders of the Committee to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol in Michigan say the campaign has collected at least 100,000 more signatures than required to put adult cannabis use on the 2018 ballot, according to a WXYZ report. The group needed 252,523 signatures to get the issue to voters. “The people have been far ahead of […]