North Dakota: Gathering Signatures For Medical Marijuana Petition To Start

Jacob Redmond

Well-Known Member
Supporters of a proposed ballot measure to legalize medical marijuana in North Dakota hope to start collecting petition signatures next week, the chairman of the sponsoring committee said.

Rilie Ray Morgan of Fargo said the corrected version of the petition was expected to be sent by overnight mail Tuesday to Secretary of State Al Jaeger, who will review it and, if everything is right, issue a letter approving the petition for circulation.

Jaeger initially rejected the group's petition last month because of incomplete paperwork. Supporters turned in a completed version Nov. 2, and Jaeger gave it back to them with suggested formatting changes on Nov. 12.

"They kind of pointed us in the right direction with all the corrections we had to make," said Morgan, who suffers from chronic back pain and says he hasn't used marijuana but would like the option.

Jaeger said Tuesday that the turnaround time for approving the petition will depend on what the group submits.

"We don't know what to expect, so until we see it I don't know if it'll be something we can get turned around in an hour or if it's something we can get back to them on" with more changes required, he said.

If Jaeger approves the petition, Morgan said the North Dakota Committee for Medical Marijuana hopes to start gathering next week the 13,452 valid signatures it needs by July 11 to get the statutory measure on the November 2016 general election ballot. He's said they hope to collect about 15,000 signatures.

The group plans to use only volunteers, after the last attempt to put medical marijuana on the statewide ballot in 2012 failed because of forged signatures that led to fraud charges against paid petition circulators.

If approved by voters, the measure would legalize possession of up to 3 ounces of medical marijuana for treatment of about a dozen debilitating medical conditions, while allowing the state Health Department to add more. State-licensed facilities would dispense the marijuana, though people living more than 40 miles from the nearest dispensary could grow up to eight marijuana plants in an enclosed, locked facility after notifying law enforcement.

North Dakota House lawmakers voted down a bill in February that would have made North Dakota the 24th state to legalize medical marijuana.

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News Moderator: Jacob Redmond 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Gathering Signatures For Medical Marijuana Petition To Start
Author: Mike Nowatzki
Photo Credit: Liz Essley Whyte
Website: Jamestown Sun News
 
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