Ohio voters will once again have the chance to legalize marijuana on Nov. 7 — eight years after Ohioans overwhelmingly rejected a proposed constitutional amendment that would have made cannabis legal.
But there are some key differences between the two.
Issue 3 in 2015 was a proposed constitutional amendment and today’s Issue 2 is a citizen-initiated statue, or law.
“Because of that, it does allow the legislature significantly more leeway to be able to change the details of the law with further legislation,” said Morgan Fox, political director for National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.
Political action committee ResponsibleOhio spent $21.5 million on the 2015 Issue 3 campaign, which was soundly defeated 64% to 36%.
For this year’s election, Issue 2 would legalize and regulate the cultivation, manufacturing, testing and the sale of marijuana to Ohioans 21 and up. It would also legalize home grow for Ohioans 21 and up with a limit of six plants per person and 12 plants per residence, and impose a 10% tax at the point of sale for each transaction.
The Coalition to Regulate Marijuana like Alcohol is behind this year’s ballot initiative.
The oligopoly of Issue 3
Another major difference