It was 1996. I was four years old. California Proposition 215 passed and for the first time, legal medical cannabis became available. I don’t remember it honestly, but that moment triggered a reckoning of outdated and ineffective efforts to control cannabis, which continues on November 3rd.

The moment in 1996 created for me and my generation of millennials a new, decriminalized lens for which to view cannabis and its potential. In my lifetime, from first experimenting with cannabis after high school and then earning my PhD in plant biochemistry, advancing cannabis research, to starting an agtech company dedicated to the genetic improvement of cannabis, we continue this march toward legalization. But another march hasn’t started yet.

This has been an unforgettably difficult year for many Americans. The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has cost lives, jobs, and completely upended our normal societal habits. But amid this chaos is the reality that, in just 51 days, Americans across the country will head to their local voting booth or mail in their ballots to decide who'll lead this country for the next four years.

Keep in mind that it's not just the presidency or the make-up of Congress that'll be decided on November 3, 2020. Residents in six states will be heading to the polls to decide if marijuana will be legalized from an adult-use or medical standpoint.

A Mississippi voter initiative that would legalize marijuana for medicinal purposes is receiving the wrath of Phil Bryant, the state’s former Republican governor who left the statehouse in January after being forced out by term limits. In a self-published op-ed replete with passages in all-caps and paragraphs that rarely exceed two sentences, Bryant urged voters not to approve Initiative 65, which would legalize and create a regulatory system for medical marijuana.

Regardless of the economic and health crises this year, the marijuana industry continues to be one of the quickest growing industries in United States.

Only a couple months remain until voters in numerous states will see medical and recreational cannabis legalization measures on their ballots. South Dakota will actually have a medical and a recreational legalization measure on its ballot.

Arizona, Montana, New Jersey, and South Dakota have ballot initiatives that could legalize marijuana for adults 21 and older. Mississippi, Nebraska, and South Dakota have ballot initiatives that could establish medical marijuana programs.

These 6 states will be voting on cannabis legalization in November 2020:

Approval of medical marijuana on Nov. 3 by Mississippi voters, based at least on polling, seems like a lead-pipe cinch.

A poll conducted by Millsaps College and Mississippi-based Chism Strategies in 2019 placed support for legalizing medical marijuana at 67% to 27%. In today’s polarized society, it’s difficult to find that level of support for many issues.

Yet some voters, who support the use of marijuana for medical purposes, might have second thoughts on approving the issue at the ballot box.

There will be two medical marijuana proposals on the ballot this November: a citizen-sponsored initiative, and an alternative approved by legislators.

Now that Mississippi has enacted legislation legalizing the cultivation of hemp, you want to start a hemp company. You have your big idea and a business plan ready, but you begin to wonder whether you should be thinking about any legal issues as you get your company off the ground. That’s where we come in.

Bradley’s Cannabis Industry team has a deep understanding of the many unique legal and business issues that impact hemp companies in Mississippi and beyond. Our multidisciplinary team of attorneys helps businesses successfully identify and mitigate risk and recognize opportunities for sustainable growth. In our experience, here are the 10 things to consider when starting a hemp business.

Mississippi farmers or those interested in becoming farmers can start applying for hemp grower licenses.

The Daily Leader reports the license application period began Saturday and runs through Oct. 31 through the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Industrial hemp has been promoted as a new cash crop for struggling farmers.

Hemp is a member of the cannabis plant family but contains only traces of the THC chemical compound that causes a high for marijuana users. Hemp is used for textiles, fuels, clothing, body lotion, paper, rope and chemical absorbents, among other products.

Congress paved the way for state hemp programs in the 2018 Farm Bill, which removed industrial hemp from the list of federally controlled substances.

State leaders in Mississippi are urging voters to carefully consider two medical marijuana measures on the November ballot, characterizing the less restrictive of the two proposals as dangerous. Republican state Rep. Jill Ford, Ed Langton, the chairman of the Mississippi Board of Health, and Madison County Sheriff Randy Tucker said that Initiative 65, which was placed on the general election ballot via a citizen petition, would lead to an increase in drug abuse and allow cannabis dispensaries to open near schools and churches.

Despite it being a crazy year, Americans can't lose sight of the fact that Election Day is a little over three months away. At stake are 435 seats in the House of Representatives, roughly a third of all seats in the Senate, and, of course, the Oval Office.

But it's an equally important election at the state level. No matter what happens federally, it's unlikely that marijuana's scheduling will be changed anytime soon. This means state-level cannabis legalizations will continue to play a major role in growing the U.S. pot industry.