Ron Strider
Well-Known Member
Marijuana legalization forces say they will not participate in a study commission if it is approved by the General Assembly, calling such a group a "flawed delay tactic."
Regulate Rhode Island and members of its coalition are instead pressuring legislative leaders to vote on a scaled-back version of legislation that would make marijuana legal in July 2018 but includes no immediate plans for retail stores.
The House is expected to vote on a bill that would create the 22-member panel today. The group would be charged with looking at whether marijuana should be legalized. It would report its findings to the General Assembly by March 2018.
The Rhode Island chapter of the NAACP, Doctors for Cannabis Regulation and the local chapter of Direct Action for Rights and Equality were all added to the panel in a version of the bill approved by the House Judiciary Committee last week. On Wednesday, all three said they would not participate because they are "not interested in helping lawmakers once again avoid a vote on legalization."
"It is hard to believe that a study commission could provide helpful recommendations on how to implement a policy of legalizing and regulating marijuana when that same study commission cannot agree on whether the policy should even exist," said Matthew Schweich, director of state campaigns for the Marijuana Policy Project, the parent organization of Regulate Rhode Island.
"I appreciate the thought of including the NAACP in the study commission, but I cannot participate in and thereby legitimize this flawed process," said Jim Vincent, president of the Rhode Island chapter of the NAACP.
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Supporters of legal pot say they will boycott study commission - News - providencejournal.com - Providence, RI
Author: Jennifer Bogdan
Contact: Contact Us - providencejournal.com - Providence, RI
Photo Credit: None Found
Website: providencejournal.com: Local & World News, Sports & Entertainment in Providence, RI
Regulate Rhode Island and members of its coalition are instead pressuring legislative leaders to vote on a scaled-back version of legislation that would make marijuana legal in July 2018 but includes no immediate plans for retail stores.
The House is expected to vote on a bill that would create the 22-member panel today. The group would be charged with looking at whether marijuana should be legalized. It would report its findings to the General Assembly by March 2018.
The Rhode Island chapter of the NAACP, Doctors for Cannabis Regulation and the local chapter of Direct Action for Rights and Equality were all added to the panel in a version of the bill approved by the House Judiciary Committee last week. On Wednesday, all three said they would not participate because they are "not interested in helping lawmakers once again avoid a vote on legalization."
"It is hard to believe that a study commission could provide helpful recommendations on how to implement a policy of legalizing and regulating marijuana when that same study commission cannot agree on whether the policy should even exist," said Matthew Schweich, director of state campaigns for the Marijuana Policy Project, the parent organization of Regulate Rhode Island.
"I appreciate the thought of including the NAACP in the study commission, but I cannot participate in and thereby legitimize this flawed process," said Jim Vincent, president of the Rhode Island chapter of the NAACP.
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Supporters of legal pot say they will boycott study commission - News - providencejournal.com - Providence, RI
Author: Jennifer Bogdan
Contact: Contact Us - providencejournal.com - Providence, RI
Photo Credit: None Found
Website: providencejournal.com: Local & World News, Sports & Entertainment in Providence, RI
