An effort to legalize marijuana in Ohio hit an obstacle Feb. 23 as Attorney General Mike DeWine rejected an early draft of a legalization group’s potential ballot initiative.
ResponsibleOhio filed the summary of its plan Feb. 13 along with 1,000 valid signatures from Ohio voters. DeWine cited several missing details in the plan, including a stipulation that adults in the state would be legally allowed to share marijuana with other adults and information about how taxes from marijuana sales would be used.
The group has until July to amend its proposal and file it with the Ohio secretary of state along with 300,000 signatures in support of the idea. If the group can do that, the issue will appear on the November ballot as a constitutional amendment for voters to approve or reject.
ResponsibleOhio’s plan has drawn controversy from both conservative lawmakers and fellow marijuana legalization advocates. Taking a page from Ohio’s 2009 constitutional amendment allowing four casinos to operate in the state, the proposal would create 10 marijuana grow sites around the state, including three in the Greater Cincinnati area. Those grow sites would then sell to licensed retailers, which would vend the marijuana or marijuana-infused products to adults over the age of 21.
DeWine has called the idea “stupid” and says it will increase drug use. He and other state officials have also said the plan would set up a statewide monopoly on marijuana growth.
Fellow marijuana legalization advocates like Ohioans to End Prohibition have their own ballot initiatives in the works but not until 2016.
“ResponsibleOhio’s plan will benefit a few wealthy benefactors and allow the black market to continue to thrive, leaving the state with the same problems as before,” says Ohioans to End Prohibition Political Director Michael Revercomb-Hickman.
ResponsibleOhio has adjusted its proposal to try and address concerns. Originally, its plan would not have allowed Ohioans to grow marijuana at home for personal use. Last week, the group announced it was amending its proposal to allow for home growth.
This article appears in Feb 25 – Mar 3, 2015.
