By Steve Elliott
Hemp News
Supporters of marijuana legalization in California now have not just one, but two initiatives cleared to collect signatures to try to qualify for the November ballot.
The Marijuana Control, Legalization and Revenue Act (MCLR) has been given the green light to start collecting signatures, joining the California Cannabis Hemp Initiative (CCHI), which received clearance back last September from the California Secretary of State to circulate petitions. CCHI's deadline for more than 500,000 signatures is just three weeks away, on February 24, while MCLR has until June 30.
If passed, the MCLR, like the CCHI, would legalize recreational cannabis use for adults 21 and older. It would also strengthen existing medical marijuana laws and legalize hemp production, according to supporters, reports Ashley Bailey at KPCC.
"It stops putting 20,000 people a year in California for low level offenses and it creates a diversion program," said Silicon Valley businessman John Lee, who leads the nonprofit Americans for Policy Reform, one of the groups behind the measure. The law would also open up possibilities for medical research, as well as generating revenue from a variety of cannabis sources, according to Lee.
