Ohio Cannabis Legalization Effort Gathers 10 Times Required Signatures

LOS ANGELES– The Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol (CRMLA), an Ohio-based coalition sponsoring a statutory measure to legalize adult-use cannabis, submitted an additional 6,545 signatures to Secretary of State Frank LaRose’s office in Columbus on August 3. This number is nearly ten times the required valid signatures needed for the measure to qualify for the November ballot, in addition to the ones that have already been validated.

Initially, CRMLA had submitted over 223,000 signatures on July 5. However, on July 25, Secretary LaRose announced that nearly 100,000 signatures, approximately 45% of the total, were rejected, leaving the effort just 679 signatures short of the necessary requirement to be placed before Ohio voters.

As a result, CRMLA had a ten-day grace period to collect additional signatures to compensate for the shortfall, an opportunity contested by Republican state lawmakers sponsoring Issue 1 in a special election on August 8. Issue 1 proponents aim to require a 60% supermajority for constitutional ballot measures, but it would not affect the current 2023 cannabis proposal as CRMLA’s initiative is a statutory measure focused on amending the Ohio Revised Code.

The 10-day grace period ended on August 4, but the CRMLA organizers delivered the additional signatures a day early, well surpassing the number required to meet the state threshold. Roughly 11% of the extra signatures need to be validated for the proposal to officially appear on the November ballot.

In response to the successful submission, CRMLA spokesperson Tom Haren expressed gratitude to all supporters and stated, “Regulating marijuana is popular in Ohio. We’re looking forward to giving Ohio voters a chance to make their voices heard at the ballot this fall.”

If approved by voters, Ohio would become the 24th state to legalize adult-use cannabis in the United States, joining neighboring Michigan, where licensed retailers recorded nearly $2.3 billion in cannabis sales in 2022. Residents of Ohio frequently cross state borders to enjoy legalized cannabis in Michigan.

The proposed statute put forward by CRMLA aims to permit adults aged 21 and older to purchase and possess up to 2.5 ounces of cannabis or 15 grams of extract and cultivate up to six plants per individual or 12 plants per household. The statute also seeks to impose a 10% tax on cannabis sales, with revenue allocated towards state program costs, substance abuse treatment, supporting municipalities with dispensaries, and funding social equity and jobs initiatives.

Existing medical cannabis operators in Ohio would be allowed to transition into the adult-use program. However, the proposed statute would require the issuance of an additional 40 adult-use cultivator licenses and 50 adult-use dispensary licenses with a preference for applicants participating in the cannabis social equity and jobs program.

Additionally, the statute would authorize the establishment of a Division of Cannabis Control within the Department of Commerce to issue additional adult-use cannabis licenses 24 months after the first adult-use operator license is granted.