Ohio Campaign to Roll Back Cannabis and Hemp Changes Submits New Petition Language After Rejection by AG

The campaign seeking to roll back recently approved cannabis and hemp
reforms in Ohio on Tuesday submitted revised petition summary language
following the rejection of their initial proposal by Attorney General David
Yost, Cleveland.com reports.

Dennis Willard, spokesperson for Ohioans for Cannabis Choice, told
Cleveland.com that the campaign has “addressed each and every issue raised
by [Yost], and… are confident [the] new petition summary language will be
approved.”

“We are determined to give voters the chance to say no to SB 56 in
November, no to government overreach, no to shuttering 6,000 small
businesses in Ohio, and no to lawmakers who dared to deliver a slap in the
face to Ohioans who overwhelmingly voted to make cannabis legal in 2023.” —
Ohioans for Cannabis Choice via Cleveland.com

In his rejection of the petition summary language, Yost said the language
included “two descriptions [that] attempt to outline what is excluded under
the definition of ‘hemp’ and that those definitions could lead potential
petition signers to be “misled as to the character and import” of the
definition of hemp. In the letter, Yost also pointed to language in the
summary concerning the delivery of adult-use cannabis, noting that the
summary “inaccurately states” that the bill signed by the
governor permits the delivery of adult use cannabis; the summary
inaccurately stated that “felony offenses are disqualifying for
cannabis-related licensure,” provisions which DeWine had vetoed, making the
statement inaccurate; and that the summary inaccurately stated that the
bill targeted by the petition repealed a prohibition of license holders
offering gifts, samples, or other free or discounted adult-use marijuana
products, which Yost contended “is false.”

In order to put the issue to voters, the campaign must collect
and submit signatures equal to 6% of the votes cast in the most recent
gubernatorial election, or roughly 250,000 before the bill signed by Gov.
Mike DeWine (R) in December takes effect in mid-March. Those signatures
must come from at least 44 of Ohio’s 88 counties.