Ohio Attorney General Approves Recreational Cannabis Ballot Measure

[dropcap class=”kp-dropcap”]O[/dropcap]n May 10, Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine approved of a ballot measure that, if passed, would legalize recreational cannabis.

According to DeWine, the petition to get the measure on the ballot (referred to as “Marijuana Rights and Regulations) was “fair and truthful.” The bill details regulations that would allow recreational cannabis to be possessed, produced, transported, consumed and sold by adults over age 21. It would also allow residents to grow their own cannabis, establish rules regarding who can own cannabis businesses and would operate independently from the state’s medical cannabis program.

However, this is just the beginning of the necessary steps that must be taken to make sure that this measure makes it to the voter’s booths. Next, the Ohio Ballot Board will review the measure, and decide if it counts as a single ballot issue, or if it should be represented as multiple ballot issues. Following this, Ohioan advocates and volunteers from Ohio Families for Change must collect at least 305,591 valid signatures. Originally, DeWine denied an earlier version of this cannabis petition back in April. Even earlier in late 2017, a different group of business owners who were unable to secure a medical cannabis business license decided to attempt to legalize recreational cannabis with their own amendment.

DeWine’s recent approval means that advocates will likely not be able to obtain enough signatures before the general election, which has a deadline of July 4. Instead, the group is getting an earlier head start with the intent of getting the ballot measure on the November 2019 election. The spokesman for Ohio Families for Change, Jonathan Varner, is certain that their efforts will eventually lead to recreational cannabis in his state even if they must wait over a year. “This is unfortunate, because people are being arrested daily for activity that simply shouldn’t be criminal, only to support a black-market system,” Varner said to Cleveland.com. “We’re confident that when voters have the opportunity to vote on this issue, they will overwhelmingly approve it.”