 Florida voters approved medical marijuana in 2016, but recreational legalization efforts have thus far failed to yield positive results. There have been efforts though, by groups such as Make it Legal Florida and Sensible Florida, but unfortunately the state’s Supreme Court has ruled that their proposed measures had misleading language, and were therefore invalid.
Now, though, things are looking more positive for a measure on recreational adult use possibly making it onto the 2024 ballot. In January, that measure hit a milestone of having enough signatures to initiate a state Supreme Court review of the measure’s language. That analysis by the state’s Supreme Court is still on-going. What they’re looking for in their review, and what they rejected past measures for, is that the measure’s text does not violate the state Constitution’s single subject rule. They also want to ensure that the text does not mislead voters in anyway. If the measure passes the Court’s review, then close to 900,000 signatures will be needed before it’s officially added to the 2024 ballot. So far they have aquired more than 420,000 signatures thus far, leaving a remaining 471,000 or so signatures needed. The group Smart & Safe Florida first filed the adult-use cannabis measure last summer. They are being funded almost entirely by Trulieve, who is currently the state’s largest medical marijuana operator, and they have contributed $25 million thus far to the legalization effort. If the measure is passed, it would take effect just six months after voters approve it. In 2021, a poll found that a 59% majority of Florida voters do support legalizing cannabis for adult use. This is a close enough margin, though, and there are strong political opposers, including the Governor, that means advocates will still have their work cut out for them if the measure ends up heading to the ballot. Comments are closed.
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