Florida recreational marijuana clears first hurdle to get on 2024 ballot

Backers of a proposed constitutional amendment that would allow recreational use of marijuana have passed a preliminary hurdle to get on the 2024 ballot, submitting more than enough petition signatures to trigger a Florida Supreme Court review of the measure.

The “Smart & Safe Florida” political committee, which has been bankrolled by the multistate cannabis operator Trulieve, had submitted 294,037 valid petition signatures as of Thursday afternoon, according to the state Division of Elections website. At least 222,898 signatures are required for the court to review the proposed wording of the measure, a key legal step in the process.

Trulieve, Florida’s largest medical marijuana operator, has contributed $20 million to the effort — all but $124.58 of the money raised thus far. The committee had spent more than $19 million as of Dec. 31, with almost all the spending related to petition gathering and verification.

The Supreme Court will review the wording of the proposal to make sure that it includes only a single subject and would not mislead voters. Justices rejected two ballot proposals in 2021 aimed at allowing recreational use of marijuana.

If the Smart & Safe Florida committee gets Supreme Court approval, it would need to submit a total of 891,589 valid signatures to get on the 2024 ballot, with certain numbers of signatures coming from at least half of the state’s congressional districts.

[Read more at Tampa Bay Times]