Delays are not good when it comes to initiative related politics. Gathering signatures is not an easy thing to do. You have to get started gathering signatures early, and give it all you have, and even then often times it’s not enough to make the ballot. ResponsibleOhio is trying to legalize marijuana, and was gathering signatures for a legalization initiative until yesterday when the Ohio Attorney General rejected the proposal. Per Cleveland.Com:
The first step to putting an issue on the ballot is submitting a summary of the proposed amendment and 1,000 signatures of registered Ohio voters to the state attorney general. DeWine’s office decides whether the summary is a “fair and truthful” representation of the proposed amendment.
DeWine informed ResponsibleOhio the summary fell short in two areas:
- It doesn’t mention that the proposed amendment allows adults over age 21 to share specified amounts of marijuana.
- It does not “accurately reflect the manner in which proposed taxes would be distributed.”
DeWine also noted that one of the proposed marijuana growing sites identified in the amendment possibly violates the amendment’s restriction on where the sites can be located. The amendment would prohibit growing sites, marijuana product manufacturing and packaging and retail stores from being within 1,000 feet of a “house of worship,” public library, public elementary or secondary school, state-licensed child care center or playground adjacent to those facilities.
ResponsibleOhio was already planning on turning in a new proposal. ResponsibleOhio had been receiving a lot of criticism inside and outside of Ohio due to the fact that their original proposal didn’t allow home cultivation, and instead gave that right to just ten entities. The new proposal provides for a license that people can get to grow up to four plants. ResponsibleOhio has until July 1 to gather 305,591 valid signatures.
