Oklahoma Cannabis Advocates Provide 2022 Ballot Initiatives for Cannabis Reform

A cannabis advocacy group in Oklahoma filed ballot initiatives for 2022 to amend the legal use of marijuana for anyone over the age of 21 in the state constitution and reform the state’s current oversight agency on the medical marijuana industry. 

Per Ganjapreneur, The Oklahomans for Responsible Cannabis Action (ORCA) are leading the petition to change the legislature on the adult use of cannabis in the Sooner state. ORCA wrote drafts of the two initiatives proposing the changes, the first drafts of which were available for feedback from the general public.

The first ballot initiative is called the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Enforcement and Anti-Corruption Act. The medical petition seeks to replace the Oklahoma State Medical Marijuana Authority (OMMA) with the Oklahoma State Cannabis Commission to independently oversee the state’s medical-marijuana program.

“You can try to have conversations and be productive with OMMA directors, but at the end of the day, they’re having talks that you’re not in the room for. And they’re making decisions that are not in line with the industry, and it’s tough.” ORCA co-founder Jed Green said. Previous OMMA secret meetings lead to a lack of transparency from the group and at least one lawsuit alleging a violation of the Open Meetings Act. Green says the new commission will improve communication between the different state agencies with authority on various aspects of a cannabis business.

The second initiative introduces the Oklahoma Marijuana Regulation and Right to Use Act, a legislative proposal to legalize use for adults at least 21 years old, marijuana sales, possession rights, and more. Part of the bill provides guidelines on a 15% sales tax used to fund cannabis research, reformed law enforcement training on marijuana, and other resources.

Green stated that a lack of enforcement correlates to an increase in illegal cannabis activity, which Oklahoma is, unfortunately, no stranger to.

Ganjapreneur reported that at least 178,000 valid signatures are required to put the initiatives on the ballot in 2022. If passed, Oklahoma residents will be able to roll and light up their joint papers without feeling the pressures of the law.