Illinois House returns to Springfield this week

This Wednesday and Thursday, the Illinois House of Representatives will convene to discuss leasing the state lottery as a way to raise funds without raising taxes, overriding bills vetoed by the governor, and other issues.

Please take this opportunity to remind your state representative about the need for a medical marijuana law in Illinois by sending him or her an e-mail in support of the Senate medical marijuana bill. Be sure to ask your representative to encourage the senator from your district to vote "yes" on SB 2865 in November so that it can be sent to the House for consideration.

If you're a patient, medical professional, or family member of a loved one who could benefit from medical marijuana, please call your state senator and request a meeting with him or her before November. If you are able to schedule a meeting with your senator, please print out this summary of SB 2865 as well as this handout highlighting the amendments that were made after consultation with law enforcement and take them with you to the meeting. If you would like advice before meeting with your senator, please contact MPP legislative analyst Nathan Miller at (202) 905-2065 or at Nathan@mpp.org.

Click here to download a printable PDF version of the bill summary.

Click here to download a printable PDF version of the amendment handout.

You can help get the word out about the need for a medical marijuana law in Illinois by hanging this new flyer in places where legislators are likely to see them (coffee shops, near newspaper stands, etc.) If you live in or near Springfield, please make an extra effort to get as many of these flyers up as soon as possible.

If you haven't already, please share our new public service announcements with your local radio station

Click here for a complete list of Illinois radio stations.

Thank you for supporting the marijuana policy project and all of our allies. Together, we can change Illinois for the better by convincing legislators to get on board with their constituency and agree that sick and dying patients should be afforded legal protection for following the advice of their physician.