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Chronicle AM: CA MJ Init Has Big Bucks, Second AR MedMJ Init Will Be on Ballot, More... (8/26/16)

Submitted by Phillip Smith on (Issue #941)

It's another all-marijuana news day today. Initiative battles are heating up, New York's Health Department wants to expand the medical marijuana program, and more.

Marijuana Policy

California's Prop 64 Campaign Has Raised More Than $11 Million. The campaign to legalize marijuana in California it out-fundraising the opposition by a margin of 61 to 1, according to new campaign finance reports. The Prop 64 campaign has raised $11.45 million, while the No on 64 opposition campaign has raised only $185,000. Prop 64 has received more than $2.3 million from tech billionaire Sean Parker, $750,000 from Weedmaps founder Justin Hartfield, $1.5 million from the New Approach PAC, and $1.25 million from Drug Policy Action, among others. Opposition funding is coming from Smart Approach to Marijuana, the California Teamsters, and law enforcement.

Nevada Law Enforcement Comes Out Against Question 2. At a Carson City press conference Thursday, state Attorney General Adam Laxalt and other law enforcement officials came out in opposition to the Question 2 marijuana legalization initiative. The claimed "this ballot initiative was written by major marijuana interests, who's bigger concern is making money," not the greater good of Nevadans, and cited concerns about impaired driving.

Tennessee Governor Opposes Decrim in Memphis and Nashville. The state's two largest cities are both considering decriminalizing small-time marijuana possession, but Republican Gov. Bill Haslam wants none of it. "I'm not a fan," he says. "While I do think we've had some people who have spent more time in jail than they need to for that. I'm not in favor of decriminalizing that."

Medical Marijuana

Second Arkansas Initiative Will Be on Ballot, Even If It Doesn't Qualify. The state already has one medical marijuana initiative on the ballot, the 2016 Arkansas Medical Cannabis Act, and state officials announced Thursday that a second initiative, the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Amendment, will also appear on the ballot, even though they have yet to certify that it has enough signatures to do so. That's because Thursday was the deadline to certify ballot issues. Because the secretary of state's office was not able to verify late signatures before the deadline, the second initiative has been "certified to the ballot and assigned a number." If the initiative actually comes up short on signatures, votes for it in November will not be recorded.

Florida Medical Marijuana Initiative Polling Above 67%. The Amendment 2 medical marijuana amendment initiative appears headed for victory in November. A new poll from the University of Florida Bob Graham Center has support at 67.8%, in line with a slew of polls since early 2015 that show the initiative will a low of 61% approval and up to 80%. Because the initiative is a constitutional amendment, it needs 60% to pass.

New York Health Department Calls for Expanding Medical Marijuana Program. In a report marking the two-year anniversary of the state's medical marijuana program, the Department of Health called for expanding the program to meet patient needs. "To meet additional patient demand and increase access to medical marijuana throughout New York State, NYSDOH recommends registering five additional organizations over the next two years, using a phased-in approach to permit their smooth integration into the industry," the report said.

Permission to Reprint: This content is licensed under a modified Creative Commons Attribution license. Content of a purely educational nature in Drug War Chronicle appear courtesy of DRCNet Foundation, unless otherwise noted.

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