Marijuana ballot issue misses its first hurdle

Associated Press

COLUMBUS

Another marijuana legalization effort in Ohio has missed its initial state hurdle.

Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine rejected a petition Friday for the proposed Legalize Marijuana in Ohio constitutional amendment, citing problems with its summary. The group must resubmit a description he deems “fair and truthful” to proceed to the 2016 ballot.

It is one of three efforts to relax Ohio’s marijuana laws that are making their way through the authorization process with the goal of a statewide vote.

DeWine said amendment’s backers incorrectly stated the amount of pot taxes to be distributed to Ohio’s local government fund.

He said their summary also failed to mention the proposal sets no age limit on the sharing of equipment among medical marijuana users, only among recreational users.

The attorney general also said, “I must caution that this is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all defects in the submitted summary.”