Legalization of recreational marijuana is on the ballot in 4 states

Freshly cut cannabis sits in a processing center that will be turned into smokable cannabis at the Beleaf medical marijuana cultivation facility in Earth City, Missouri on February 7, 2023. Four states will vote on the legal status of marijuana on Tuesday. File photo: Bill Greenblatt/UPI | Licensed photo

Nov. 5 (UPI)— On Tuesday, voters in four states will weigh in on marijuana legalization.

Ballot measures in Florida, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota could open up the ability for states to produce and sell marijuana for medical or recreational purposes. Every ballot measure is the result of citizen-driven petitions.

Marijuana is legal to some extent in 38 states. Twenty-four states have legalized recreational marijuana.

On May 21, the Ministry of Justice changed its composition. classification from Schedule I to Schedule III controlled substances. Schedule III drugs are considered to have a lower risk of abuse than Schedule I and II drugs and can be prescribed over the telephone.

More than 80% of adults believe marijuana should be legal in at least some cases, and 57% said it should be legal for medical and recreational use, the study found. survey Pew Research Center.

Florida’s Third Amendment

Florida Third Amendment would allow adults 21 years of age and older to purchase, possess and use marijuana products for recreational purposes. It is already legal to purchase, possess and use marijuana for medical purposes.

The amendment would also allow medical marijuana treatment centers and other state-licensed retailers to cultivate, purchase, manufacture and sell cannabis products and accessories related to the use of cannabis. A person can have up to 3 ounces or about 8.5 grams.

Constitutional amendments require a 60% majority to pass.

Nebraska Initiative 437 and 438

Nebraska has two measures on the ballot to legalize medical marijuana.

Initiative 437 would eliminate penalties for possession of up to 5 ounces of cannabis for medical purposes. Initiative 438 legalizes the possession, production, distribution, delivery, and dispensing of cannabis for medical use.

Initiative 438 would also establish the Nebraska Medical Cannabis Commission, which would be responsible for regulating the medical marijuana industry in the state.

In Nebraska, ballot measures require a simple majority vote to pass. At least 35% of voters who cast a ballot must also vote to approve the ballot measure.

North Dakota initiated Measure 5

A selective measure aimed at legalize marijuana for recreational use is on the ballot in North Dakota for the third time in six years. Similar measures were rejected in 2018 and 2022.

Measure 5 started Legalizes the production, possession and recreational use of marijuana for adults 21 years of age and older. The state agency will regulate recreational marijuana and registration of adults, businesses and dispensaries.

State lawmakers will have until Oct. 1, 2025 to set the rules.

A person will be allowed to possess an ounce of cannabis, four grams of concentrate and 1,500 milligrams of edibles.

Ballot initiatives require passage by a simple majority vote in North Dakota.

South Dakota initiated Measure 29

Initiated Measure 29 in South Dakota aims to legalize possession, cultivation, use and distribution of marijuana for recreational purposes to adults 21 years of age or older.

In 2020, voters passed a state constitutional amendment that would legalize recreational marijuana. Governor Kristi Noem, an outspoken opponent of legalization, challenged this measure in court after the fact, and the state Supreme Court ruled in her favor. The court ruled that the ballot measure failed to meet the state’s requirement on one subject.

Medical marijuana is already legal in South Dakota, despite Noem’s effortswho tried to block medical protection.

Ballot measures in South Dakota require a simple majority of votes cast to pass.