The city of Lubbock in Texas has certified activists have submitted enough valid signatures for a local marijuana decriminalization measure to be placed on the ballot, if the lawmakers do not pass the reform.
The city secretary announced on Thursday that, two weeks after the Freedom Act Lubbock Committee submitted more than 10,000 signatures, they had verified an additional 5,185. This is approximately 300 more than the required number.
The official stated in a notification that “A resolution and certification will be presented to Lubbock City Council on Tuesday.” This is to ensure that the City Council receives all documents pertaining to both the petition and the proposed ordinance and also receives a certificate attesting the results of the verification process.
Lubbock is the tenth-largest city in Texas by population. Local legislators will have 30 calendar days to hold an hearing and decide whether to enact this reform. If they do not enact the reform, it will be put on the ballot to the voters.
The campaign announced last month that they had reached their signature collection goal, but would continue to petition until the deadline to ensure enough valid submissions were received and ” to show city leaders the amount of support this petition has.”
The campaign announced on Thursday that “the Freedom Act Lubbock Team” was ecstatic about the news. We are grateful to everyone who signed up for it.
If the initiative passes, the local police will not be able to arrest or cite adults who are in possession of four ounces or less of cannabis unless a court order is issued by a state or federal authority. In the event that this does occur, the initiative states the “City policy shall be enforcement of Class B and A misdemeanors marijuana possession as its lowest enforcement priority.”
The measure’s text states that the goal is to “promote health, safety and general welfare for the people of Lubbock.” It also aims to “carefully allocate scarce city resources and reduce the risk of unfair enforcement practices while focusing the city’s resources on the most important public safety concerns.”
Lubbock will be the second-largest city in Texas by population to implement the reform. Ground Game Texas led the reform in cities such as Austin and Delton.
The decriminalization proposal that was put before San Antonio voters in May, and which included provisions that would prevent the enforcement of abortion restrictions, was defeated by a large majority.
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In certain jurisdictions, where decriminalization was approved by voters, advocates have had to deal with issues.
The city council overturned Harker Heights’ ordinance shortly after the voters approved it, citing concerns that the measure was in conflict with state law. activists, however, collected signatures to repeal the repeal of the ordinance in May.
Killeen City Council temporarily suspended the implementation of its local voter approved ordinance. They argued that lawmakers had to address legal concerns before approving it, which they did. Bell County sued the policy in April.
The Texas House of Representatives this session passed a number of bills that would decriminalize cannabis, allow expungements, and give chronic pain patients access to medical cannabis as an alternative to opioids. But the Senate ultimately blocked the bills, which was a common theme in cannabis reform in the conservative legislative body over the past several sessions.
In 2021 and 2019, the House adopted similar proposals for decriminalizing cannabis.
A Texas Democratic Senator brought marijuana legalization up on the Senate floor in May. He was trying to attach an amendment to a resolution that had nothing to do with the issue, allowing Texans the opportunity to vote at the polls to end prohibition. But , the symbolic proposal was ultimately rejected . Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick (R), in agreement with another member, agreed that the cannabis amendment was not relevant to the larger legislation.
According to a University of Texas/Texas Politics Project survey conducted last year, nearly 3 out of 4 Texas voters (72%) support decriminalizing cannabis. Over half (55%) of respondents said they support a broader legalization. Seventeen percent of respondents said that it should not be legalized at all.
The same institution also showed in March that a majority felt that state marijuana laws should “be less strict.”
Senate Banking Committee chairman says he voted for Ohio Marijuana Legalization Ballot Initiative, despite reservations
Photo by Mike Latimer.
The post Texas activists collected enough signatures to put marijuana decriminalization on another local ballot, Lubbock officials announce first appeared on Marijuana moment.
