Proponents of an ordinance to decriminalize marijuana in Lubbock, Texas have submitted well more than the required signatures to put the measure to a vote of the people.
“This was a collective effort that could not have been possible without the more than 40 volunteers and the many other citizens that helped us collect these petition signatures and did the necessary work of notarizing, tallying and verifying,” said Adam Hernandez, a communications official for Lubbock Compact, the group pushing the Freedom Act Lubbock.
Hernandez says that “this is only the first part. What will happen next is up to each and every citizen of Lubbock. We need each and every person, especially the ones who have been sitting out of elections, to get registered and make your voice heard at the ballot box.”
Under the proposed ordinance, the city would end arrests and citations for the misdemeanor possession of marijuana. The measure also decriminalizes marijuana paraphernalia.
Proponents have submitted more than 10,500 signatures for their initiative, twice the required amount.
Once the signatures are verified the city will have the choice of passing it as-is, or sending it to a vote of the people in the spring.
Last November five Texas cities, with support ranging between 60% and 82%, all passed similar ordinances to Lubbock’s Freedom Act.
