Ohio marijuana activists said on Thursday that they turned in 29,918 more signatures for a legalization initiative after the state said their previous submission was insufficient. Now the campaign is “confident” they have enough to force lawmakers to take up the issue. Last month, the Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol (CTRMLA) submitted what it thought were enough valid signatures to trigger the legislative review of legalization, but the secretary of state’s office said that too many were invalid and gave activists a small window to collect more. CTRMLA spokesman Tom Haren told Marijuana Moment on Thursday that the group successfully rounded up the additional needed 13,000 signatures that were needed and will have “room to spare.” “We feel confident that we will meet the signature requirements and look forward to the legislature taking up an issue that a majority of Ohioans support this year,” Haren said in a press release. The measure that lawmakers would be required to consider would legalize possession of up to 2.5 ounces of cannabis for adults 21 and older, and they could also have up to 15 grams of marijuana concentrates. Individuals could grow up to six plants for personal use, with a maximum 12 plants per household.

Kyle Jaeger, Marijuana Moment, 01/13/2022 15:47:00

Open article: https://www.marijuanamoment.net/ohio-marijuana-activists-turn-in-more-signatures-for-legalization-initiative-after-temporary-setback/

Delaware lawmakers on Wednesday filed a newly revised marijuana legalization bill that has several changes from a previous version that passed a House committee last year but stalled ahead of a scheduled floor vote amid disagreements about equity provisions. Rep. Ed Osienski (D) is sponsoring the legislation again. It would allow adults 21 and older to purchase and possess up to one ounce of cannabis, but it would not provide a home-grow option. A marijuana commissioner under the state Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Enforcement would be responsible for regulating the cannabis market and issuing business licenses for retailers, cultivators, manufacturers, and laboratories. Equity is built into the licensing scheme. After 19 months of the bill’s enactment, regulators would have to approve 30 retailer licenses, half of which would go to people identified as social equity applicants who have been disproportionately impacted by cannabis criminalization, for example. There would also be a 15 percent excise tax on retail cannabis sales, which would not be applied to medical marijuana products. Seven percent of tax revenue from adult-use sales would go to a new Justice Reinvestment Fund, and the legislature would be tasked with appropriating the remaining revenue after administrative costs are covered.

Kyle Jaeger, Marijuana Moment, 01/13/2022 16:33:00

Open article: https://www.marijuanamoment.net/delaware-lawmakers-file-new-marijuana-legalization-bill-with-key-equity-revisions/

The Mississippi Senate voted 47-5 on Thursday to legalize medical marijuana, a move that comes more than a year after voters approved a medical cannabis ballot measure that was later overturned by the state Supreme Court. If the long-awaited legislation, which now heads to the House for consideration, becomes law this session, a medical cannabis program could be up and running in the state by later this year. Its route to the passage, however, remains precarious. Gov. Tate Reeves (R) has already threatened a veto over its proposed purchase limits, which he says are too high, and some other state officials remain wary. But supportive lawmakers have said they’re confident they’ll have the votes to override any veto and push the legislation through. Sen. Kevin Blackwell (R), the bill’s chief sponsor, pushed back on claims from the governor and others that the measure would be so lax as to effectively legalize marijuana for recreational use. “I suggest that if you think that, maybe you should take the time and actually read the bill because you’ll find that it is a medical bill,” he said on the floor Thursday. Medical marijuana remains a contentious topic in Mississippi despite voters there decisively approving a broad legalization initiative in November 2020. The state Supreme Court overturned the measure on procedural grounds last May—simultaneously doing away with the state’s entire initiative process—and lawmakers have spent the last several months navigating what comes next.

Ben Adlin, Marijuana Moment, 01/13/2022 13:59:00

Open article: https://www.marijuanamoment.net/mississippi-senate-votes-to-legalize-medical-marijuana-defying-governors-veto-threat/

The Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol submitted 29,918 additional signatures in support of an initiated statute legalizing the adult use of marijuana to the Ohio Secretary of State’s office today. After submitting 206,943 signatures on Dec. 20, 2021, the Coalition was notified that it needed to collect approximately 13,000 additional signatures to qualify the initiated statute proposal. The Coalition mobilized quickly and easily collected more than twice that number. “We feel confident that we will meet the signature requirements and look forward to the legislature taking up an issue that a majority of Ohioans support this year,” said spokesman Tom Haren. “We encourage the public to visit our website, www.JustLikeAlcohol.com, to learn more about the proposed statute.” Once local Boards of Elections validate at least 13,062 signatures, and the Secretary of State Certifies them, the statute will be presented to the Ohio General Assembly. The legislature will then have four months to consider the legislation. Should legislators opt not to pass the bill as-is, the Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol can collect an additional 132,877 signatures to present the issue to Ohio voters on the Nov. 8th, 2022 ballot.

Posted Melissa Schiller, Cannabis Business Times, 01/13/2022 16:48:00

Open article: http://www.cannabisbusinesstimes.com/article/coalition-to-regulate-marijuana-like-alcohol-turns-in-additional-signatures-ohio

In 1996, California became the first state to legalize medical cannabis. Since then, 36 states (and four U.S. territories) have followed suit, keeping pace with rapidly evolving policies and attitudes toward cannabis. In addition to the widespread legalization of medical cannabis, 18 states, two territories, and the District of Columbia have legalized cannabis for adult use. As one of 14 states that have not legalized medical cannabis under state law, Tennessee is in the minority, even in the South. In fact, five of Tennessee’s neighboring states have legalized cannabis for either medical (Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, and Missouri) or adult-use (Virginia). And Mississippi appears to be on the verge of legalizing medical cannabis, too (as we’ve written about here, here, and here). Tennessee’s current policy regarding cannabis does not appear to reflect the attitudes of its voters. According to a 2018 poll conducted by Middle Tennessee State University, most Tennesseans (approximately 81%) support some form of legalization, with 44% supporting medical use and 37% supporting adult-use legalization. This widespread popularity has even caught the attention of some Tennessee state representatives who are personally opposed to legalizing medical cannabis.

420 Intel – Marijuana Industry News, 01/13/2022 19:00:00

Open article: https://420intel.com/articles/2022/01/14/planting-seeds-present-state-and-potential-prospects-medical-cannabis-tennessee

Italy – Supreme Court of Cassation informs cannabis advocates that it has validated the 630K signatures collected in referendum push Marijuana Moment reports Italian officials certified on Wednesday that activists collected enough signatures to place a marijuana legalization referendum on the country’s ballot this spring—though there’s still one more procedural step before the measure will officially be on its way to voters. About three months after advocates turned in about 630,000 signatures for the measure—which would also legalize personal cultivation of other psychoactive plants and fungi like psilocybin mushrooms—the Supreme Court of Cassation informed the campaign that it had validated them. Now that the signatures are confirmed, the referendum will go to the separate Constitutional Court, which will determine the legality of the proposal’s provisions. That opinion will be issued on February 15, and if deemed legal, the government will set a date for the vote. “While we wait for the final ok…we’re starting to organize a national mobilization to inform all citizens that cannabis is better legal,” the campaign said in a Facebook post about Wednesday’s court announcement on the signatures.

Cannabis Law Report, 01/12/2022 23:35:00

Open article: https://cannabislaw.report/italy-supreme-court-of-cassation-informs-cannabis-advocates-that-it-has-validated-the-630k-signautres-collected-in-referendum-push/