Ohio group aims to get state pot amendment back on 2016 ballot \t\tCo-founder of Ohioans to End Prohibition says efforts by a separate task force looking into medical marijuana would take too long for sick patients \t\t\t\t Published: Jan 16, 2016, 10:14 am Add a Comment By Ann Sanner, The Associated Press COLUMBUS, Ohio - A group hoping to put a marijuana legalization issue on Ohio"s ballot this fall says it won"t wait to see if state lawmakers act on medical marijuana and will push ahead with its proposal, despite the failure of a separate effort in November. Jacob Wagner, the co-founder of Ohioans to End Prohibition, said in an interview Friday that his organization remains focused on gathering the more than 305,000 valid signatures needed by July to get its "Cannabis Control Amendment†before voters in the presidential election year. His comments come a day after Ohio House leaders joined two marijuana legalization advocates in announcing a task force to study medical marijuana. Wagner said convening a task force "doesn"t mean the fight is over. It certainly doesn"t mean that they are going to pass anything good, anything substantial anytime soon.†He said sick patients who could benefit from access to medical marijuana cannot afford to wait the task force"s outcome. "We still have to keep moving forward with what we"re trying to do,†Wagner told The Associated Press. His group"s proposed constitutional amendment seeks to legalize pot for medical and recreational use and leave cannabis production to the free market. Adults 21 and older could legally grow up to six mature marijuana plants and have up to 100 grams, about 3.5 ounces. Patients would have higher limits. Medicinal marijuana users could have up to 200 grams, or 7 ounces, and a dozen mature plants. Wagner said the group has collected roughly 60,000 to 70,000 signatures so far and is working to raise money for its campaign. The future of marijuana in Ohio has been facing uncertainty since last fall, after the overwhelming defeat of a separate effort to legalize cannabis for both medical and recreational use in a single vote. The measure, Issue 3, would have established 10 sites with exclusive authority to grow marijuana, and with profits going to the issue"s deep-pocketed investors. Wagner said he doesn"t view voter opposition to Issue 3 as a rejection of marijuana legalization in general. "The defeat last year was just a straight-up rejection of greed,†he said. "It was just a rejection of that specific plan.†Voters opposed Issue 3 nearly 64 percent to 36 percent, but polls have suggested Ohioans support medical marijuana. State lawmakers have been weighing how to address the issue. On Thursday, Ohio House leaders joined two marijuana legalization advocates in announcing a broad task force that included members from business organizations, law enforcement and medical associations. Among the members named was Jimmy Gould, a key supporter of the ResponsibleOhio campaign that brought Issue 3 to the ballot. Gould told reporters Thursday that he believed the task force would work in good faith to get something done on medical marijuana. "When you lose, you get back up on your feet and take the best path that"s available to you,†Gould said. "I think this mechanism, this way, is probably the best way we possibly could go about it.â€
Well he's acknowledging the last one failed because people didn't want to see Big Marijuana become a thing like Big Tobacco, so let's hope this one is more average citizen friendly
i seen on the news today Toledo Ohio legalized recreational cannabis. Look out here comes the refugees lol gotta love em tho
even the lobbyists groups didn't back the monopoly of top 10 donors who gave most $$ would be the 10 statewide growers. NORML. high times safe access said NO as well
A lot of these "reformers" lied when they said that it would be at least another 5 years before people in Ohio got another chance to vote on legal weed.
ohio will not pass in 2016. A lot of the people that voted against the last proposal are herb smokers. They said they don't want it to be legal so they can continue making money through the black market. Don't fall for the monopoly bs. It was just a tactic created by the opposition to get people that support marijuana to vote against the proposal. Watch, later this year they will find something in this proposal to turn around and make idiot smokers go against it.
A 2:1 loss is not solely because of herb smokers, sorry. There's a % of smokers, like the ones in the forum, who would've voted for it because they wanted to see pot shops, despite the monopoly. There are many published stories about how this lost because the general public as a whole were disgusted over the monopoly provisions with the legal weed and RO's embarrassing campaign. The people who are funding the initiatives like the one in Ohio aren't funding these for compassion and ending the drug war. They are out to make money, and are attempting to take advantageadvantage of the majority opinion that weed should be legal and are writing their own versions of the law so they can make them and their donors the most profits, instead of something everyone who wants it legal can agree on, which is that it should be modeled very similarly to alcohol, and it is anything but.
it was .mostly due to herb smokers. No proposal is going to be perfect and really the monopoly excuse is lame as hell especially when the proposal would have changed a lot of lives for the better by getting rid of any penalties associated to possession. Having a weed charge on your record is a stain that can affect your ability to get housing and jobs. I know first hand. So it really seems to me that the smokers that voted against it because they don't want a monopoly are actually greedier than those that wanted to make a business out of it. The proposal allowed for personal growth of up to 4 plants but somehow that wasn't good enough for the asshat stoners. I'm not sure what people are thinking. Big business is effectively a monopoly run by a small amount of big wigs Like I said Ohio will not pass this year. Wait, once it gets closer to voting on it the opposition will find some hole in it to dupe idiot stoners into voting against it.
I've never heard of anyone having trouble with housing or jobs over a decriminalized marijuana infraction.
maybe cause it hasn't happened to you? I got declined an apartment because I have a marijuana charge on my record and I've been turned down jobs because of it Most apartment complexes wont rent to you if you've had a drug charge within the past 2-3 years
Ohio dweller here i was a medical marijuana grower in Colorado and low key grower in Michigan I hated the old plan but this new plan seems to be a little better though I haven't did any deep research on the matter but if I can grow personal without a license and the market is free like in Colorado I'll vote yes good luck Ohio hope you get it right! Sent from my SM-G530T1 using Tapatalk
It wont pass. The opposition will come up with something to scare voters away. Last year they pushed the monopoly angle and dumbass weedheads fell for it. It will never pass in this shitty state
Why is it that people from Florida go out of their way to diss Ohio? It's weird. I've never seen members of s state have such an obsession with another like Floridians fo with Ohio.