Florida to Vote November 5 on Legalizing Recreational Cannabis

Florida is currently undergoing their own version of cannabis reform like other states across the country have gone through. On this year’s election ballot, voters will find several amendments such as one called “Amendment 3” (1). Currently in the Sunshine State, medical cannabis is legal. With Amendment 3, voters will be able to decide “yes” or “no” to legalizing recreational cannabis. Along with cannabis legalization, adults that are 21 years old or older will be able “…to possess, purchase and use marijuana for personal, nonmedical reasons,” (1). Individuals will also be able to carry around 85 g of cannabis or 5 g of cannabis concentrate.

The approval of Amendment 3 would give way for medical cannabis dispensaries to sell cannabis products to consumers that are planning to consume recreationally. An additional change that could come from this amendment is that businesses that are state-licensed would receive the authorization to distribute, cultivate, and process cannabis products (1).

If Amendment 3 does not pass, Florida’s constitution will not be changed, and medical cannabis will continue to be the only form of cannabis legal in the state.

To secure its passage, Amendment 3 will need to gather around 60% of votes (1). If Florida passes this amendment, it will be added to the growing list of states that have approved cannabis recreationally.

The issue of recreational cannabis in Florida has been an indicator of presidential candidate Donald Trump’s standpoint on cannabis policy. In a September 8 post on the Truth Social platform, Trump stated (2), “As I have previously stated, I believe it is time to end needless arrests and incarcerations of adults for small amounts of marijuana for personal use. We must also implement smart regulations, while providing access for adults, to safe, tested product. As a Floridian, I will be voting YES on Amendment 3 this November. As President, we will continue to focus on research to unlock the medical uses of marijuana to a Schedule 3 drug, and work with Congress to pass common sense laws, including safe banking for state authorized companies, and supporting states rights to pass marijuana laws, like in Florida, that work so well for their citizens.”

In the past, Trump has stated his support for leaving recreational cannabis legalization up to individual states and for rescheduling it under the Controlled Substances Act (3). In mid-October, Vice President Kamala Harris unveiled her cannabis legalization plan as part of her 2024 presidential campaign.

In late August, Noid Knowledge podcast guest Jini Glaros, Chief Scientific Officer at Modern Canna Labs, discussed the potential impact of Florida's cannabis legalization on the industry, both medical and recreational, and regulations. “I think that we're going to keep both [medical and recreational cannabis] in Florida,” Glaros explained. “From my understanding, is there will be a recreational and there will be a medicinal market. How testing may look different, how pricing may look different, it's hard to say until it passes… because we are a vertical system already, I don't foresee many changes as far as testing regulations go, and that's ultimately probably to preserve the safety of the consumer, because when you think about it, being a patient in the medicinal program costs money. So if you don't have to pay that additional money to be in the medicinal program and you decide to go the recreational route, you still want to protect those patients who may be using it through the recreational market. So I would foresee testing regulations staying similar. When you look at the hemp regulations in Florida, the hemp regulations actually all refer to the cannabis testing regulations and say that products in Florida should be tested the same way that cannabis products are. So that's how the Florida Department of Agricultural and Consumer Services has gone about handling hemp. I would foresee recreational cannabis handled in a similar way.”

The issue of cannabis for recreational purposes is also on the November ballot in North Dakota, South Dakota, and Nebraska.

References

1. Maldonado, M.; Rodriguez, E. What to know about amendment 3, Florida’s marijuana amendment on the 2024 election ballot https://www.cbsnews.com/miami/news/florida-marijuana-amendment-3-2024-election-ballot/ (accessed Nov 5, 2024).
2. Concepcion, S.; Tsirkin, J.; Thorp V, F.; Richards, Z. Trump says he will vote yes on Florida ballot measure to legalize marijuana https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/trump-says-will-vote-yes-florida-ballot-measure-legalize-marijuana-rcna170197 (accessed Nov. 5, 2024).
3. Allen, J.; Bowman, B.; Kamisar, B.; Kapur, S.; Korecki, N.; Nicholas, P.; Pettypiece, S.; Reilly, R.; Seitz-Wald, A.; Smith, A.; Tsirkin, J.; Wong, S.; Wollner, A.; Bland, S.; Terkel, A.; Carman, J. Harris and Trump: Compare where they stand on key issues https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-election/harris-trump-stance-issues-policies-president-race-rcna150570#marijuana (accessed Nov. 5, 2024).