Activists across the United States are working to make their state the next to legalize recreational marijuana.
24 states plus the District of Columbia have legalized recreational marijuana. Although there are activists working to legalize marijuana in all of the other 26 states, some have achieved far more progress towards accomplishing this goal than others.
With that in mind, below are the four states still on track to legalize recreational marijuana this year:
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Florida
An initiative to legalize recreational marijuana is almost certain to appear on the November ballot in Florida, with polling released in November by the University of North Florida showing support among likely voters to be at an impressive 67%.
A challenge by the state’s attorney general has the Florida Supreme Court considering whether or not the proposal should be removed from the ballot, with the deadline for their decision set for April 1. Governor Ron DeSantis recently indicated he does not belove the court will rule against the initiative, saying “I think the court is going to approve that. So it’ll be on the ballot”. Many legal experts have given the same assessment of the situation.
If passed into law, the initiative would allow those 21 and older “to possess, purchase, or use marijuana products and marijuana accessories for non-medical personal consumption by smoking, ingestion, or otherwise.” Licensed marijuana retail outlets would be allowed to distribute the plant, with any of the state’s licensed medical-marijuana dispensaries allowed to “acquire, cultivate, process, manufacture, sell and distribute such products and accessories.”
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New Hampshire
Last week the New Hampshire House of Representatives voted 239 to 141 to pass House Bill 1633. The legislation would legalize recreational marijuana for those 21 and older, allowing them to possess up to four ounces of marijuana, 10 grams of marijuana concentrates and edibles with up to 2,000 mg of THC. If the measure is passed through the Senate, it will be sent to Governor Sununu who said in November that marijuana legalization in New Hampshire is “inevitable“.
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Hawaii
Earlier this month Hawaii’s Senate Committee on Health and Human Services voted to pass Senate Bill 3335 to legalize recreational marijuana. The same day, it was given approval by the Senate Judiciary Committee. The measure will soon be considered by the full Senate, which voted 22 to 3 to pass a different legalization bill last session.
The proposed law would allow those 21 and older to possess up to an ounce of marijuana and up to five grams of marijuana concentrates, purchasable from a licensed marijuana retail outlet. These outlets would be supplied by licensed growers and processors, with marijuana required to be tested through licensed testing labs. The legislation would establish the Hawaii Cannabis Authority and Cannabis Control Board within the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs in order to oversee a legal marijuana market, with recreational marijuana taxed at 14% and medical marijuana taxed at 4%. The personal cultivation of up to six plants would also be allowed.
Although the House of Representatives failed to act on last year’s legalization bill, proponents of this year’s measure are hopeful that after a year of consideration and with a new, more moderate bill based on an outline put forth by Attorney General Anne E. Lopez, the House will take a different approach this session.
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South Dakota
A political organization behind an initiative to legalize recreational marijuana for everyone 21 and older is currently gathering signatures in an attempt to put the issue before voters this November. The initiative would establish a system of licensed and taxed marijuana retail outlets, supplied by licensed growers and producers.
A similar initiative was on the 2022 general election ballot, and although it was rejected by voters it received a commendable 47%.
According to polling release last month, a plurality of voters in the state support legalizing marijuana, 45% to 42%. Although support for legalization was 2% lower than support for the 2022 initiative, opposition to legalization was 10% lower than opposition to the 2022 initiative. Based on this data, just 28% of those who remain undecided would need to vote in favor of a legalization initiative for it to pass.
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Honorable Mention: Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania is closer than ever to achieving legalization, with Governor Josh Shapiro (D) recently including the issue in his budget proposal. The move is supported by the vast majority of his party, which narrowly controls the House of Representatives. However, Republicans control 28 of the Senate’s 50 seats, and all but a couple appear to be opposed to legalizing marijuana – at least for now.
As such, Pennsylvania deserves a mention, but unless Senate Republicans have a quick change of heart, we can’t say that Pennsylvania is “on track” to legalize this year.
