Will Ohio legalize marijuana? Here's what lawmakers, advocates and experts say
With a possible ballot measure and other changes being considered for medicinal marijuana, the future of the drug remains uncertain for now in Ohio.
Time is running out for the state legislature to consider a proposal pushed by the Coalition to Regulate Alcohol Like Marijuana.
Advocates submitted the proposed law to the legislature in January, and lawmakers have until May to consider it.
Once the clock expires in May, the group can start collecting signatures to place the proposal on the November ballot. The measure would become law if approved by voters.
The measure, which the group has pushed through the citizen initiated statute process, would allow Ohioans ages 21 and older to buy marijuana and grow plants at home. The proposal calls for products to be taxed 10%, with revenue going toward administrative costs, addiction treatment programs, municipalities with dispensaries and a social equity and jobs program.
Here's what legislators, advocates and experts say about where the legalized marijuana stands in Ohio.
What state legislators are saying
The proposal to legalize recreational marijuana faces some staunch opposition from at least one of the state's legislative leaders.
Sen. President Matt Huffman, R-Lima, on Thursday said he was against the measure that may soon be headed for the November ballot.
“If I’m Senate president and have anything to say about it, we’re not going to vote on recreational marijuana,” Huffman said.
But, not all state lawmakers feel the same way.
Rep. Jamie Callender, R-Concord, showed his support for the proposal by attending a gathering on the steps of the west side of the statehouse Thursday. The gathering, which included some speakers, a march and flags showing a pot leaf, took place on April 20, an unofficial holiday celebrated by supporters of marijuana.
"If we can't get it done legislatively, we'll do it on the ballot," he said.
What advocates are saying
Dressed in a suit covered in marijuana leaf print, Juan Collado Diaz led chants outside the statehouse Thursday in support of legalizing the drug for recreational purposes.
"Don't panic, it's organic," chanted Diaz, who serves as marketing and community engagement director of the Sensible Movement Coalition (SMC), a nonprofit that hosted the Thursday gathering.
Diaz said he doesn't use marijuana, but he said it's helped his with his mother's arthritis and health conditions some of his friends have.
"This is not a topic that's only affecting one or two people," he said. "It's affecting hundreds and thousands."
Jason Durham, public affairs director for SMC, said if nothing else, he'd at least like Ohio legislators to sign off on some sort of reciprocity for people who travel through the state with marijuana from another state.
Durham, said he suffered a motorcycle accident and fractured his spine. Marijuana, he said, helped more than the narcotics he was prescribed.
Durham, who grew up and lived in Cincinnati most of his life, said he moved to Michigan so he could more easily access marijuana.
"I had to become a medical refugee and go to Michigan, where I was able to get off all the opiates, all the pills," he said.
What an expert is saying
Despite other states voting to approve legalized pot, it's difficult to say whether Ohio will be next, said Doug Berman, executive director of Ohio State University's Drug Enforcement and Policy Center.
"We're getting closer but we may still be a long way off," Berman said.
Although Berman said the states that approve of recreational marijuana get a lot of attention, he thinks Ohio is more politically similar to the ones that have turned down the chance to legalize the drug.
Oklahoma, another state that already has medical marijuana, voted down a ballot measure to legalize recreational pot. In March, 61% of Oklahoma voters opposed legalizing weed, reports Dispatch sister paper The Oklahoman.
Along with Oklahoma, Berman said both Arkansas and South Dakota also recently voted down proposals. Given Ohio is more conservative than states like Michigan or Colorado that have already legalized marijuana, Berman suggested Ohioans may be unlikely to so in what'll be an "off, off year election" where there may be little else to motivate them and get them to the polls.
Still, if the recreational marijuana isn't legalized this year in Ohio, Berman said it likely will be in the years ahead.
"I do think this is in some sense inevitable but the path is uncertain because the politics are so dynamic," Berman said.
