MPP spearheaded most of the major state-level cannabis policy reforms enacted in the past 20 years.
MPP played a leading role in 12 of the 21 adult-use legalization laws, starting with drafting, funding, and staffing the historic 2012 Amendment 64 initiative in Colorado — which made the state the first place in history to legalize cannabis for adults and regulate it like alcohol. MPP also led the coalitions that passed initiatives to legalize and regulate cannabis in Alaska, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana, and Nevada.
Turning to state legislation, MPP spearheaded the advocacy campaigns that made Vermont and Illinois the first two states to legalize cannabis for adults through the legislative process rather than the ballot box. MPP also played a leading role in passing the most recent legalization two laws to pass a state legislature — Connecticut and Rhode Island — and in Maryland, where voters approved a legalization measure that lawmakers referred to them.
MPP and the campaign committees it funded also played a leading role in successful efforts to pass 15 state medical cannabis laws (in Arizona, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, and Vermont) and seven decriminalization laws (in Delaware, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont).
Meanwhile, MPP is also working with patient advocates and allies to advance medical cannabis protections in several other states, including Kansas, South Carolina, and Texas. In addition, MPP monitors and analyzes all cannabis-related bills in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, as well as cannabis policy in the U.S. territories.
Visit your state page to learn about current cannabis-related legislation or initiatives in your state or to contact your state legislators. We also invite you to review MPP’s resources in support of decriminalization, legalization and regulation, and medical cannabis.