Here's a great example of a State wanting to jump on the Cannabis Tax Revenue bandwagon.
Even Mississippi, the poorest state in the country knows they can solve some of their budget problems by legalizing and taxing cannabis.
All they have to do is ask the public if they want it, and they resoundingly said, "heck yes".
When states see the huge tax revenues from recreational cannabis, they're going to all start wanting to legalize it.
Couldn't be better for Cresco.
Medical marijuana will be on Mississippi’s November ballot
In September 2019, Mississippians for Compassionate Care submitted 105,686 signatures to qualify Initiative 65 for the November 2020 ballot. (Source: Dave Ryan)
By WLOX Staff
January 8, 2020 at 4:10 PM CST - Updated January 8 at 5:47 PM
JACKSON, Miss. (WLOX/WLBT) - Mississippi voters will have an opportunity this year to vote on legalizing medical marijuana in the state. Ballot Initiative 65 is now on the ballot, but it may not be the only initiative up for consideration.
Back in September, Mississippians for Compassionate Care submitted 105,686 signatures to qualify Initiative 65 for the November 2020 ballot. They only needed 86,000 signatures, but each one had to be reviewed and approved by the Secretary of State’s Office. That process is now complete.
The Mississippi Legislature now has four months to review, amend, adopt, or reject the initiative before the next statewide general election. As part of that process, lawmakers could decide to place their own amended version of the medical marijuana initiative on the ballot.
According to Section 23-17-29, Miss. Code Ann., “If the Legislature amends an initiative, the amended version and the original initiative shall be submitted to the electors.”
Meanwhile, the Mississippi Board of Health has come out against the medical marijuana initiative. In December 2019 special meeting, the board explored the pros and cons surrounding medical marijuana. While board members noted the potential medical benefits of marijuana, cannabidoil and THC, they also said there were numerous known harms of using cannabis products, including: addiction, mental illness, increased accidents, and smoking related harms.
The board also felt the proposed amendment gave very broad uses of medical marijuana, i.e. ‘pain management,’ and felt they would have no ability to restrict the consumption of edibles or THC.
Because of this and other reasons, the members of the Mississippi State Board of Health expressed their ‘strong opposition’ to the Medical Marijuana 2020 Ballot Initiative.
Since 1996, Washington, D.C. as well as 33 states have legalized medical marijuana.
RESOLUTION REGARDING THE MEDICAL MARIJUANA 2020 BALLOT INITIATIVE
Whereas the Mississippi State Board of Health is charged with formulating policy regarding public health matters; and Whereas the Mississippi State Board of Health conducted a special Board Meeting in December 2019 for the purposes of understanding issues surrounding medical marijuana, and information was presented by representatives from Medical Marijuana 2020, the Mississippi State Medical Association and the University of Mississippi Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences; and Whereas medical evidence to date demonstrates that chemical constituents of cannabis (marijuana), cannabidiol and THC, have numerous potential medical uses, with four cannabis-based compounds that have currently undergone FDA review and which are available by prescription (prescription formulations of cannabidiol and THC), used for the treatment of certain seizure disorders and anorexia/nausea respectively, including patients afflicted with AIDS and Cancer; and Whereas Marijuana is a Schedule I drug and illegal under federal law; and Whereas numerous states have made non-pharmaceutical marijuana products available for either medical or recreational uses. States permitting medical use only have wide variability in regulatory oversight. Many do not allow smoking of raw product or have other restrictions on mechanisms of consumption; and Whereas there are numerous known harms from the use of cannabis products including addiction, mental illness, increased accidents, and smoking related harms; and Whereas, there is not a clearly defined nor FDA approved “MedicalMarijuana.”
No federal insurance or other health insurance provider payments are available for its purchase; and Whereas, a ballot initiative has been introduced that will allow the public to vote on the legalization of medical marijuana in November of 2020 in Mississippi; and Whereas, the proposed amendment to the Mississippi State Constitution amendment would allow the use of marijuana for a very broad number of medical indications including such vague reasons as pain management, there would be no ability to restrict the mechanisms of consumption (i.e., edibles, combustible smoking), there would be no ability to control for the concentration of THC, or the proportion of THC to CBD; and any subsequent changes to the components of this amendment would have to occur through ballot measure rather than changes to state statute; and these products are not FDA approved, do not have standard dosing per unit of consumption, and are not supported by rigorous scientific evidence to support the claimed health benefits; and Whereas, the proposed amendment would assign responsibilities to the Mississippi State Department of Health far beyond the scope and mission of the Agency, including oversight of agricultural production of marijuana, oversight of marijuana product processing and tax collection; and Whereas, the consumption of any combustible inhaled product is harmful to individual health; and
Whereas, routine marijuana consumption has numerous known harms and is contrary to the mission of public health; and Whereas the Ballot initiative would require the Mississippi State Department of Health to oversee a medical marijuana program that is beyond the capacity of the Department and would seriously harm the function of the Agency; and Whereas the Mississippi State Board of Health does not believe it should be able to set tax rates and spend money without legislative authorization or oversight; and Whereas the proposed ballot measure is a constitutional amendment, and as such is not subject to the oversight and management of the legislature and the Governor's office; and any required changes to the proposed amendment would require additional ballot measures, rendering needed changes essentially impossible to achieve; and Whereas Cannabis-based products have only four FDA approved prescriptions for existing medical indications and additional uses for cannabis products should be validated through scientific study and approved by regulatory authorities such as the FDA;
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED THAT
The Mississippi State Board of Health expresses its strong opposition to the Medical Marijuana 2020 Ballot Initiative; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED
that this Resolution be spread upon the minutes of the Mississippi State Board of Health and that copies of this Resolution be distributed to the members of the Mississippi Legislature and to the public. ADOPTED THIS DAY THE 8
TH
DAY OF JANUARY 2020
News 
Market Data 
Discover 
AI
