A former Arkansas lawmaker is now heading up a campaign to put marijuana legalization on the state’s 2022 ballot. Eddie Armstrong, a Democrat who previously served as minority leader in the state House of Representatives before leaving office in 2019, is chairing the newly formed advocacy group Responsible Growth Arkansas. His plan is to place a reform initiative on next year’s ballot that would “allow the regulated sale of adult-use cannabis in the state,” according to a statement provided to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. The measure’s text has yet to be filed with the secretary of state’s office, but Armstrong told Marijuana Moment that “more specific information will be forthcoming in the next few weeks.” “I look forward to visiting more as things come fully online,” he said. A separate group of activists with Arkansas True Grass is already in the signature-gathering process for a 2022 ballot initiative that would create a system of regulated sales for adults 21 and older, allowing them to purchase up to four ounces of cannabis and grow up to 12 plants for personal use. Regulators with the state Agriculture Department and Alcoholic Beverage Control Division would be responsible for overseeing the program and issuing marijuana business licenses under that group’s proposal.
Kyle Jaeger, Marijuana Moment, 10/26/2021 16:14:00