New Bill Could Kill Marijuana Legalization in Michigan Before November Vote

Many Michiganders are excited about the chance to vote for marijuana legalization this November. Unfortunately, we might not even see it on the ballot thanks to a new bill that just passed the Senate. 

According to Cannabis Now, Michigan's most promising legalization initiative (of the several in play for the 2016 election) is in jeopardy thanks to a newly-proposed time limit on collecting signatures for a ballot initiative.

The new measure just passed the Senate, and is now on its way to the House of Representatives. If passed, it would impose a new 180-day limit on signature collection and, essentially, blow our chances of seeing marijuana completely legal for recreational use right out of the water.

There will be no debate and no extensions given on signature collection once the new bill is signed by Governor Rick Snyder, but legalization advocates are already considering other options should the worst happen. MILegalize chairman Jeff Hank said, “If the state doesn’t approve us for the ballot, we’re going to sue — that’s 100 percent guaranteed.”

Many believe that this is a backhanded maneuver, set in motion solely to thwart our chances to vote on marijuana legalization. It's a bit ridiculous for the government to waste time denying us the right to vote for something that 56% of Michiganders want legalized, yet they drag their feet when we need money to clean up the mess Rick Snyder has made of Flint with the water crisis.