Ohio Attorney General David Yost on Thursday rejected the summary of a cannabis legalization law, citing seven deficiencies in the proposal. The group behind the proposal, the Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol, had submitted the summary language late last month.
In the letter to the group’s attorney, John P. Galligan, Yost says the proposal fails to explain the extent of the Division of Cannabis Control’s (DCC) rule-making authority; fails to explain the purposes of the social equity and jobs program; fails to explain the DCC’s enforcement mechanisms; does not accurately explain that adults can only legally cultivate and possess six cannabis plants total; fails to identify all protections for individuals engaging in conduct legal under the proposal; fails to disclose that the DCC must provide specific information to financial institutions; fails to explain employer protections and employment policies under the proposal.
Taken together, Yost says the issues prevent the summary from being “fair and truthful,” which is required under Ohio’s ballot initiative law.
“In total, the summary does not properly advise a potential signer of a proposed measure’s character and limitations. For these reasons, I am unable to certify the summary as a fair and truthful statement of the proposed chapter. However, I must caution that this is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all defects in the submitted summary. Finally, 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 in the letter
Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Spokesman Tom Haren told the Cincinnati Enquirer that the group is reviewing the attorney general’s decision and plans to resubmit language in the near future.
Once a summary is approved, supporters would have to collect 132,887 signatures of registered voters to put the measure before the Ohio General Assembly, which would then have four months to pass, reject or pass an amended version of the law. If they don’t pass the bill, supporters could collect another 132,887 signatures to place it on a statewide ballot.
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