People remain behind bars for cannabis-related convictions despite the abundance of legalization and decriminalization measures that roll out across the country. Is weed decriminalized in Florida? According to the state's latest legislative session, the answer is not yet, but lawmakers are continuing to push for it.
Medical marijuana and low-THC cannabis are legal in Florida for qualified patients, but possession for recreational purposes is still a felony. In 2019, efforts to legal recreational use failed in the state legislature, with the bill failing to pass the House.
In 2021, the state's legislative session begins today, and lawmakers are pushing to expunge marijuana crimes that have since been decriminalized. In a show of support for the efforts, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey signed on yesterday to work from her Florida vacation.
Marijuana company Trulieve is bankrolling a proposal to legal the plant for recreational use in Florida, though the proposal is aimed for the 2024 ballot. The company is also pushing to decriminalize the plant for personal use.
After this latest defeat for recreational marijuana, the grounds for legalization don't look as fertile as they once did. Florida, Delaware, and New Hampshire all failed to pass recreational bills in 2020, while New Jersey and Oklahoma failed to pass recreational bills in 2021.
On April 1, the House passed a bill to decriminalize marijuana federally. The bill, called the “Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act,” hopes to expunge cannabis-related criminal records from the public record.
With the passage of the bill, the Senate is now expected to consider the measure. President Joe Biden has been in support of the decriminalization effort, but he did adopt a stance toward decriminalization. “No one should be in jail because of marijuana. As President, I will decriminalize cannabis,” he said during a campaign stop.
But the House’s passage of the bill doesn’t mean that the effort is out of the woods yet. The Senate is expected to push back the measure, and with a loss in Oklahoma, is legal weed running out of fertile states?
Many states have been pushing for the decriminalization of marijuana, with Oregon and South Dakota legal recreational use in 2020. New Hampshire and North Dakota have decriminalized simple possession, but with losses in Oklahoma and Florida, momentum is slowing.
The push to legal marijuana recreational has been gaining steam in recent years, but with losses in key states, the political landscape is shifting. The push for legalization in Florida might not be dead, but it’s definitely on pause for the time being.
Trulieve is still pushing for their proposal to be on the 2024 ballot, but that’s still a few years away. In the meantime, marijuana remains a felony in Florida, and those convicted of cannabis-related crimes remain behind bars.
The push for marijuana decriminalization and legalization is far from over in Florida, but the path to success is now a lot steeper than it used to be. The federal bill is a step in the right direction, but it remains to be seen if it will be enough to turn the tide in the Sunshine State.
The fight to decriminalize marijuana in Florida is not over yet, but it’s clear that the path to success is now more difficult than it was before. The passage of the federal bill is a positive step, but it remains to be seen if it will be enough to tip the scales in favor of decriminalization.
Only time will tell if the efforts to decriminalize marijuana in Florida will be successful, but for now, the state remains one of the few that still criminalizes cannabis possession. The push for change is still strong, but with losses in key states, the path to success is now more difficult than ever before.
