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Ohio Attorney General Approves Final Cannabis Ballot Petition
For the next step to get on the ballot in 2022, Ohio cannabis activists need to collect 132,887 valid signatures from 44 of the state’s 88 counties. Then, the measure will be reviewed by the legislature, which will decide whether or not to include it on the 2022 ballot.
The state Attorney General’s office made the news public yesterday. And as soon as the news hit the surface, cannabis activists from all over the state were elated as this bill is set to revolutionize the regulation of Ohio cannabis.
Ohio Cannabis Ballot Initiative
Ohio cannabis enthusiasts have been particularly active about bringing a change in the state’s rulings regarding the herb. They have been working in collaboration with numerous organizations and groups to ensure that they can gather everything they require for proposing a flawless bill.
In this regard, they came up with a bill that appeared perfect on the outlook. However, the attorney general’s office thought otherwise. Therefore, the authorities rejected the proposal and claimed that the summary included in the white paper is ambiguous and biased. Based on these remarks, some people might believe that the activists who drafted this bill did not do justice to the job.
However, in reality, we have seen that more than half of the Ohio cannabis legalization bills proposed are either wholly rejected or sent for amendments. This isn’t because of the lawmakers’ incapability. Instead, we see these results due to the majority of senior authorized personnel being conservative, anti-marijuana people.
Similarly, the CTRMLA (Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol), who was in charge of this proposal, met with every paper they could find in order to create the perfect draft for Ohio cannabis. Nonetheless, they updated the rejected bill, and yesterday, it got certified. Not only that, but the same officials who deemed the previous summary as vague appreciated the new outline and said that it was fair, truthful, and unbiased!
Next Steps
This was a significant achievement considering the circumstances. And this decision has filled Ohioans with new hope. They are now eagerly waiting for the 2022 ballot measures where they will get the opportunity to cast votes and control their futures.
One notable thing about the amended measure is that it is statutory instead of constitutional. It means that after collecting the signatures, the legislature has the liberty to accept or reject the proposal. If the latter occurs, the campaigners must collect 132,887 additional signs to place the measure in front of the ballot.
