A Democratic lawmaker in Kansas said he will propose a resolution next week to refer medical cannabis legalization to voters in the fall.
State Rep. Jason Probst made his comments to Kansas City TV station KSHB as the Legislature kicked off its 2022 session.
Kansas House lawmakers last year passed the Kansas Medical Marijuana Regulation Act, but the measure, SB 158, wasn’t voted on in the Senate.
The Marijuana Policy Project expects the measure to be considered in the Senate in this year’s legislative session – and to have a decent shot of passing.
A resolution to get legalization on the November ballot, meanwhile, would need to pass by a two-thirds majority in both the Kansas House and the Senate.
“This is a pretty bold move,” Probst told KSHB.
But, he said, if the Legislature “can’t get it done,” then “it’s time to ask the people if they’re willing to make us get it done.”
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Probst referred to a Fort Hays State University survey in the fall of 2020 that found two-thirds of Kansas voters strongly or somewhat supported recreational marijuana.
Public support for medical cannabis tends to run much higher than that for recreational marijuana.
