California
gets go-ahead to vote on legalization of marijuana
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[June 29, 2016]
(Reuters) - Californians are set to
decide whether to make recreational marijuana use legal, as other
Western states have done, after the California Secretary of State's
office said on Tuesday the issue could be put to voters in the November
ballot.
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The proposed so-called "Adult Use of Marijuana Act," which is
supported by Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom among others, would
allow people aged 21 and older to possess as much as an ounce of
marijuana for private recreational use and permit personal
cultivation of as many as six marijuana plants.
"Today marks a fresh start for California, as we prepare to replace
the costly, harmful and ineffective system of prohibition with a
safe, legal and responsible adult-use marijuana system that gets it
right and completely pays for itself," initiative spokesman Jason
Kinney said in a statement.
The measure would also establish a system to license, regulate and
tax sales of marijuana, while allowing city governments to exercise
local control over or disallow commercial distribution within their
borders.
The initiative required just over 402,000 valid signatures to
qualify for the ballot and exceeded that number on Tuesday, the
Secretary of State's office said. Secretary Alex Padilla is slated
to certify the initiative on June 30.
Opinion polls show attitudes have shifted more in favor of
liberalized marijuana laws since California voters defeated a
recreational cannabis initiative in 2010.
California led the way in legalizing marijuana for medical purposes
in 1996, with 22 other states and the District of Columbia following
suit, although cannabis remains classified as an illegal narcotic
under U.S. law.
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Voters in four states - Colorado, Washington, Oregon and Alaska -
plus the District of Columbia, have gone a step further since 2012
in permitting recreational use for adults. Voters in several more
states will consider similar legislation in November as well.
Opponents of liberalized marijuana laws have argued that such
measures carry public safety risks and would make pot more
accessible to youngsters.
A new survey out last week showed however that marijuana consumption
by Colorado high school students has dipped slightly since the state
first permitted recreational cannabis use by adults.
(Reporting by Curtis Skinner in San Francisco; Editing by Brendan
O'Brien and Simon Cameron-Moore)
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