One proposal to legalize pot in Ohio rejected

(The Center Square) – One effort to legalize recreational marijuana in Ohio took a hit, but another is still alive.

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said he rejected a proposed statute submitted by a group pushing for legalization that used a process allowing residents to place proposed legislation in front of the General Assembly.

The Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol submitted signatures and proposed legislation late last month to Yost, who was charged with determining whether the legislative summary was a fair and truthful representation of the proposed statute. He rejected the summary.

In a response letter to the group, Yost said the summary proposes to add an entire chapter to the Ohio Revised Code, rather than enact a single law, and said the summary failed to include key elements in the summary.

“I recommend that the Petitioners carefully review and scrutinize the remainder of the summary to ensure that it accurately captures the proposed chapter’s definitions, contents and purport before it is resubmitted to this Office,” Yost wrote in the letter.

Yost identified seven areas of concern, including a failure to explain a proposed new agency’s rule-making authority, a proposed jobs program and the summary failed to be specific about the number of plants able to be grown by an individual.

A second move to legalize marijuana sits in the General Assembly after being introduced last week.

The bill includes four key components: decriminalization, a marijuana excise tax, commerce and licensing and medical marijuana. It allows for adult cultivation and possession and calls for the expungement of conviction records for previous cultivation and possession offenses.

Similar to the legislative plan from the Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol, the bill includes at 10% tax on a marijuana retailer or microbusiness’ gross marijuana sales receipts. That money would go to primary and secondary schools, roads and bridges repair and up to $20 million annually for clinical trials researching the effectiveness of marijuana in treating the medical conditions of veterans and preventing veteran suicide.

Ohio lawmakers remain on recess until September.

Disclaimer: This content is distributed by The Center Square