Ohio State Attorney General Rejects Recreational Cannabis Legalization Proposal
Today in cannabis news: Thousands of New Orleans state residents receive cannabis possession pardons; a Connecticut State Council chooses which cities will be given first priority for cannabis company permits; and the Ohio state Attorney General rejects a proposal to legalize recreational cannabis statewide.
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First up: The New Orleans, Louisiana City Council pardoned thousands of individuals who had been called to court for possession of cannabis this week, and promised immediate pardons for subsequent receivers of summonses, marking an unprecedented action intended to bring the municipality as close to cannabis legalization as feasible.
The majority vote signals an unusually broad utilization of the council’s rarely-used pardon power, which members say will benefit thousands of individuals who have been charged with minor drug offenses.
They also claimed that the decision will allow police to investigate more violent crimes. Police have historically been required to submit summonses for minor cannabis infractions, which advocates describe as “busy work” that diverts police’s attention from more vital responsibilities. Despite the fact that cannabis consumers will not face fines as a result of the automatic pardons, the regulations enacted by the council nonetheless prohibit cannabis consumption outside of private residences.
While pardons for about 10,000 previous crimes are anticipated to go into effect immediately, automatic pardons for subsequent infractions, the prohibition on public cannabis consumption, and pardons for cannabis paraphernalia possession will not go into effect until September 15.
Next up: As per criteria established this week, citizens of the state of Connecticut’s largest municipalities who have seen their areas disproportionately damaged by cannabis prohibition will be given first priority for involvement in the state’s recreational cannabis sector.
The Social Equity Council also included certain suburban and rural parts of the state where unemployment is prevalent.
Connecticut became the 19th state to implement recreational cannabis legalization in June. The legislature enacted equity measures that are among the most comprehensive in the country. Individuals from localities that have suffered the consequences of the War on Drugs are eligible for accelerated licensure under the policy, regardless of if they have a criminal background.
The legislature devised a method to identify which regions were particularly damaged by the drug war. Census tracts with a previous conviction rate for drug crimes of more than one-tenth, or a rate of unemployment of more than 10% are eligible.
Last up: The Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol’s proposal to legalize cannabis statewide in Ohio received a blow this week when state Attorney General Dave Yost denied a version of the bill.
Yost’s role was to determine if the summary described the proposal in a “fair and truthful” manner. They identified seven flaws in the provided wording, but added that there could be others.
The description, for instance, failed to define the goals of the proposal’s planned “cannabis social equity and jobs program” and failed to mention that persons were confined to owning six cannabis plants to cultivate at home.
Adults aged 21 years and up would be able to purchase, possess, cultivate, and consume cannabis under the Act to Control and Regulate Adult Use Cannabis. A 10% tax on cannabis would fund education, drug rehabilitation, and communities that have cannabis enterprises. Medical cannabis firms in Ohio, many of which support the proposal, may be granted immediate recreational cannabis permits.
It’s relatively usual for a summary to be denied the first time it’s submitted. According to spokesperson Tom Haren, the organization is evaluating Yost’s ruling and hopes to reintroduce verbiage soon.
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