TAMPA, Fla. — Every attempt to get recreational marijuana passed in Florida has failed up until this point.
But this week, medical marijuana company Trulieve announced a new petition effort and has put millions of dollars behind its push.
What You Need To Know
- Trulieve, along with country music group the Bellamy Brothers, efforting new push to add recreational marijuana to 2024 ballot
- Trulieve contributing $5 million to the effort
- Past recreational-marijuana initiatives in the state have failed
At least 900,000 signatures are needed on the petition to get recreational marijuana on the 2024 ballot. Another group called Sensible Florida started its own petition last year and so far only has 23,000 signatures.
But Trulieve is not alone in its effort.
Country music group, the Bellamy Brothers, who have a ranch in Pasco County, also are leading the new petition using their Smart and Safe Florida political committee.
Trulieve has pumped in $5 million to that effort.
“It’s all about improving access,” Trulieve CEO Kim Rivers said to News Service of Florida. “We came into this with a mission to provide access to high-quality products that are safe and have an appropriate value proposition to give folks control over their medical journey.
“In effect we are at our core about expanding the opportunity for access to safe, legal product, which is what this would allow us to continue to do.”
Even if this petition gets the 900,000 needed signatures, the state Supreme Court could block the ballot measure if it finds any legal issues with the ballot question.