Legislators consider major bills as activists submit 2022 ballot language for medical cannabis
Last update: March 8, 2021
In February, an organization of medical cannabis advocates, Kind Idaho, announced they had received approval from the secretary of state to begin collecting signatures for their petition to put a medical cannabis initiative on the ballot in 2022.
Meanwhile, the Idaho Legislature is considering two significant bills in this year’s session. SJR101 would place a constitutional amendment on the 2022 ballot that would prevent Idaho from legalizing any controlled substance — including medical cannabis. The other, H0108, would establish a limited medical cannabis program. Retired Senior Master Sgt. Jeremy Kitzhaber, who is terminally ill with Stage 4 cancer, is a strong advocate for the bill.
Under current Idaho law, an individual charged with possession of up to an ounce of marijuana faces a year in jail and/or up to a $1,000 fine. Unfortunately, this draconian law hits minority communities the hardest. According to the ACLU, black Idahoans are nearly four times more likely to be arrested for possession than their white neighbors.
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