A bill that would provide explicitly gun rights to medical marijuana patients has advanced out of its initial committee with bipartisan support.
Filed last month by Senator Mike McKay, Senate Bill 348 was approved unanimously today through the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee.
The measure states that “a person may not be denied the right to purchase, own, possess, or carry a firearm solely on the basis that the person is authorized to use medical cannabis”.
The measure must now be passed through one more committee before it can be considered by the full Senate.
Last summer Arkansas lawmakers approved a similar measure which took effect in August. The law alters Arkansas’ legal code related to concealed carry licenses to state that officials “shall not consider a person’s status as a qualifying patient or designated caregiver under the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Amendment of 2016, Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 98, § 2, in determining whether an applicant is eligible to be issued a license to carry a concealed handgun under this subchapter.”
Last Summer Maine’s Legislature passed a law that would provide the same gun rights to both medical and recreational cannabis consumers.
The full text of this one-page bill can be found by clicking here.
