Mississippi Cannabis Legalization Act, Initiative 52 (2018)
| Mississippi Initiative 52: Cannabis Legalization Act | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 6, 2018 | |
| Topic Marijuana | |
| Status Not on the ballot | |
| Type Constitutional amendment | Origin Citizens |
Mississippi Initiative 52, the Cannabis Legalization Act, was not on the ballot in Mississippi as an indirect initiated constitutional amendment on November 6, 2018.
The measure was designed to legalize and tax medical marijuana and recreational use for those at least 18 years old. Tax revenue would have been used for healthcare and education.[1]
Text of measure
Ballot title
The proposed ballot title was as follows:[1]
| “ | Should the Mississippi Constitution be amended to legalize and tax cannabis pursuant to the Mississippi Cannabis Freedom Act?[2] | ” |
Ballot summary
The proposed ballot summary was as follows:[1]
| “ | Initiative Measure No. 52 would amend the Mississippi Constitution to include the Mississippi Cannabis Freedom Act ("the Act"). The Act legalizes cannabis for persons eighteen years of age and older, legalizes cannabis for medical purposes, authorizes the collection of taxes on cannabis, and includes various other definitions and mechanisms for implementation of the Act. For purposes of this measure, "cannabis" means hemp, weed, herd, marijuana, grass, wax, concentrate extract, and hashish.[2] | ” |
Support
Steven Griffin sponsored the initiative.[1]
Path to the ballot
According to Mississippi law, the number of signatures collected must be equal to at least 12 percent of the total number of votes cast for governor in the last gubernatorial general election. Based on the votes cast in the 2015 gubernatorial election, petitioners needed to collect at least 86,185 valid signatures in accordance with the state's distribution requirement in order to get the initiative on the ballot. An initiative can be circulated for one year before becoming invalid. Initiative 52 expired without supporters submitting any signatures.
Related measures
The first attempt to legalize marijuana through the initiative process came in 1972, when California activists got an initiative certified for the ballot. The measure was defeated. Marijuana legalization advocates had their breakthrough election in 2012, when both Washington and Colorado legalized recreational marijuana. Oregonians rejected a legalization measure that same year, but approved one two years later in 2014. As of the beginning of 2016, recreational marijuana had been legalized in four states and Washington, D.C. All legalizations came through the initiative process. As of the beginning of 2016, medical marijuana was legal in 25 states.[3]
More than 60 statewide marijuana-related initiatives were submitted for the 2016 ballot. The table below shows the marijuana-related measures that qualified for the 2016 election ballot:
The following table includes past initiative attempts in the United States to legalize marijuana:
See also
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Mississippi Secretary of State, "Relating to the Legalization of Cannabis," accessed December 3, 2015
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ ProCon.org, "25 Legal Medical Marijuana States and DC," June 28, 2016
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