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jct74
01-22-2017, 03:00 AM
Marijuana reforms flood state legislatures

BY REID WILSON
01/13/17

Legislators in more than a dozen states have introduced measures to loosen laws restricting access to or criminalizing marijuana, a rush of legislative activity that supporters hope reflects a newfound willingness by public officials to embrace a trend toward legalization.

The gamut covered by measures introduced in the early days of legislative sessions underscores the patchwork approach to marijuana by states across the country — and the possibility that the different ways states treat marijuana could come to a head at the federal Justice Department, where President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for attorney general is a staunch opponent of legal pot.

Some states are taking early steps toward decriminalizing possession of small amounts of marijuana. In his State of the State address this week, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) said he will push legislation to remove criminal penalties for non-violent offenders caught with marijuana.

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Several states are considering allowing marijuana for medical use. Twenty-eight states already have widespread medical marijuana schemes, and this year legislators in Missouri, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Utah have introduced bills to create their own versions. Republicans in control of state legislatures in most of those states are behind the push.

Legislators in Connecticut, Rhode Island, Vermont, Delaware, New Mexico and New Jersey will consider recently introduced measures to legalize marijuana for recreational use.

There is little consensus on just how to approach legalization: Three different bills have been introduced in Connecticut’s legislature. Two have been introduced in New Mexico, and three measures to allow medical pot have been filed in Missouri.

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read more:
http://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/314051-marijuana-reforms-flood-state-legislatures

timosman
01-22-2017, 03:07 AM
Nobody wants to be on the wrong side of history for too long.:cool:

jct74
01-22-2017, 03:14 AM
Conservative Christian legislators really want to legalize weed in the US

by Ephrat Livni
January 20, 2017

More than half of US states—28—have legalized medical marijuana. Sixty percent of Americans support legalization, according to an October 2016 Gallup poll—including 42% of Republicans. Some of these cannabis supporters live in conservative states, and some are even in their state’s legislature, supporting marijuana reform measures.

In Missouri, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Utah—traditionally Republican locales—marijuana reform bills have been introduced for consideration in upcoming sessions. “And, it is worth noting that Republicans, who control state legislatures in most of those states, are behind the push,” writes Maureen Meehan in High Times on Jan. 16.

This month in Missouri, Jim Neely, a Republican representative and licensed physician, introduced a bill to give terminally ill patients access to medical marijuana. His daughter died of cancer in 2015, and Neely believes the drug would have helped alleviate her pain. An initiative to legalize recreational marijuana in Missouri last year didn’t make it on the November ballot. Still, Neely said that the culture seems to be receptive now, noting, “I think the timing is good.” He told Missourinet on Jan. 13 that he’s optimistic the bill will make it to the House floor, thanks to his conservative bona fides and medical professional credentials.

In Tennessee, two Republican legislators, Jeremy Faison and Steve Dickerson, a doctor, introduced a measure to legalize therapeutic weed in December. They believe it will be an economic boon to the state. The bill allows for 50 grow houses to be built, 15 of them designated for economically distressed areas.

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read more:
https://qz.com/889367/republicans-marijuana-legalization/

pcosmar
01-22-2017, 11:31 AM
Nobody wants to be on the wrong side of history for too long.:cool:
they all have been for too long.

But this is good change..

Schifference
01-22-2017, 11:33 AM
These states are not getting on board to be on the correct side of history. They are doing it for tax revenues. Legislation is the fastest way to turn a nickel bag into a quarter bag.

timosman
01-22-2017, 11:47 AM
These states are not getting on board to be on the correct side of history. They are doing it for tax revenues. Legislation is the fastest way to turn a nickel bag into a quarter bag.

Of course they are greedy. They simply use the favorable sentiment to push the law through. It is downhill from here.;)

pcosmar
01-22-2017, 11:48 AM
These states are not getting on board to be on the correct side of history. They are doing it for tax revenues. Legislation is the fastest way to turn a nickel bag into a quarter bag.

Market competition.
I am watching it work.

and have seen Tax lowered,,and simplified in one case.

Schifference
01-22-2017, 12:11 PM
Do you think overall costs of pot have gone up or down because of legalization?
There was always market competition.