Cannabis News
Florida Marijuana Campaign Asks Supreme Court To Restore 71,000 Legalization Ballot Signatures State Officials Tossed
A Florida campaign has yet to throw in the towel on its proposal to put marijuana legalization on the November ballot, with an appeal of the nullification of about 71,000 signatures now in the state Supreme Court.
The courts again they recently agreed to drop a separate case involving a statutory review of the ballot measure From Smart & Safe Florida, he has now been given another case challenging the cancellation of the earlier mass signature.
The state’s First District Court of Appeals filed a notice calling for discretionary jurisdiction and a notice of appeal to the Florida Supreme Court on Monday, opening the door for voters to decide on legalization at the polls this year. This is, of course, conditional on the judges accepting the case and the campaign winning.
Smart & Safe Florida “states that approximately 70,000 petitions that have been declared invalid must be counted as the number of signed petitions needed to be placed on the ballot.” notice the states “Smart & Safe Florida asserts the discretionary jurisdiction of the Florida Supreme Court to review this court’s decision issued on January 23, 2026. The decision expressly affects a class of constitutional or state officers.”
In December, advocates filed a lawsuit in Leon County Circuit Court alleging that Secretary of State Cord Byrd (R) illegally ordered county election officials to invalidate about 42,000 signatures from so-called “inactive” voters and about 29,000 signatures collected by out-of-state petitioners.
That lawsuit came after another court upheld an earlier decision to strike with about 200,000 signatures, which the state said were invalid because the petition did not include the full text of the proposed initiative. The campaign challenged the legal interpretation, but declined to appeal the decision, confident it had collected enough signatures to settle the dispute.
Smart & Safe Florida has generally disputed the secretary of state’s signature count, confirming that the campaign has submitted more than 1.4 million petitions, hundreds of thousands more than the 880,062 valid signatures needed before voters.
In a recent filing with the Supreme Court, Attorney General James Uthmeier (R) said his office was withdrawing a previous request for legal review of the constitutionality of the proposed cannabis initiative because the state claimed it did not have enough petitions signed by the campaign. The final count, according to the secretary of state, was 783,592 validated signatures.
In a brief response, Smart & Safe Florida said the Secretary of State’s campaign did not meet the requirements to be on the ballot because “the sponsor did not meet the signature threshold in light of the cancellations that the sponsor contests.”
In return for the signature, Florida’s attorney general and several businesses and anti-marijuana groups has asked the state Supreme Court to block the cannabis initiativecalling it a “fatal flaw” and unconstitutional.
The Florida Chamber of Commerce, the Florida Legal Foundation and Judge Frank Shepherd filed another joint document, stating that the parties “remain particularly vigilant about the abuse of the citizen initiative process by out-of-state interests who believe that Florida is another market and that the citizen initiative process is another means of exploiting that market.”
The Florida Chamber of Commerce has consistently opposed attempts to move forward with adult-use legalization, as well his polls have shown a majority in favor of reform.
The campaign fought several legal battles this cycle to get its initiative on the ballot.
Last month, the state attorney general’s office opened dozens of criminal investigations and issued records subpoenas to Smart & Safe Florida and its contractors and subcontractors over alleged fraud related to the application effort.
Activists said in November they had collected more than a million signatures to put the cannabis measure on the ballot, but still He has sued state Supreme Court officials for delaying the certification processarguing that the review of ballot content and summary should have gone ahead several months ago when the initial signature threshold was reached. The state then he agreed to proceed with the processing.
Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) campaigned hard against an earlier version of the legalization proposal, which received a majority of voters in 2024 but fell short of the 60 percent threshold needed to pass a constitutional amendment. Former Attorney General Ashley Moody (R) unsuccessfully challenged the earlier initiative in court.
Last March, however, two Democratic members of Congress representing Florida asked the federal government to investigate What they described as an “illegal diversion” of millions in state Medicaid funds Through a group with ties to DeSantis. The money was used to fight a popular ballot initiative the governor vehemently opposed that would have legalized adult marijuana.
The lawmakers’ letter alleges that a $10 million donation from a state legislative settlement was misappropriated to the Hope Florida Foundation, which later sent the money to two political nonprofits, and sent $8.5 million to the anti-Amendment 3 campaign.
The governor said last February The latest measure to legalize marijuana is in “big trouble” with the state Supreme Courthe announced that it would be blocked from going before the voters this year.
“There are a lot of different views on marijuana,” DeSantis said. “It shouldn’t be in our Constitution. If you feel strongly about it, you have a legislative election. Bring back the candidates you think will be able to deliver what you think about it.”
“But when you put these things in the Constitution, and I think, I mean, the way they were written, there’s all kinds of things going on here. I think it’s going to have a lot of trouble getting passed by the Florida Supreme Court,” he said.
the last the initiative It was introduced to the secretary of state just months after initial versions failed in the November 2024 election, despite President Donald Trump’s endorsement.
Smart & Safe Florida expressed optimism that the revised version would be successful in 2026. The campaign — which received tens of millions of dollars from cannabis industry players in the last election cycle, notably from multi-state operator Trulieve — introduced some changes in the new version that address criticisms of the 2024 push by opponents.
For example, it now specifically states that “smoking and vaping marijuana in any public place is prohibited.” Another section states that the legislature should adopt rules governing the “time, place and public manner of consuming marijuana.”
In 2023, the governor accurately predicted this The campaign’s 2024 cannabis measure would survive a legal challenge From the state attorney general. It’s not entirely clear why he thinks this version will face a different outcome.
Although there is uncertainty about how the state’s highest court will navigate the measure, a poll released last February It showed the overwhelming support of a bipartisan voter for reform— 67% of Florida voters support legalization, including 82% of Democrats, 66% of independents and 55% of Republicans.
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It’s Marijuana Time tracking hundreds of cannabis, psychedelic and drug policy bills in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon supporters by pledging at least $25/month, you’ll get access to our interactive maps, charts, and audio calendars so you never miss a development.
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In the background, a recent survey by a Trump-linked research firm found this Nearly 9 in 10 Florida voters say they should have the right to decide whether to legalize marijuana in the state
Meanwhile, last week, Florida senators passed an amended bill to increase the amount of medical marijuana a registered patient can purchase and reduce the fee for medical cannabis identification cards for military veterans.
The vote was approved by the Regulated Industries Committee in the Senate separate legislation to prohibit the smoking or vaping of marijuana in public places. Rep. Alex Andrade (R) sponsors a similar one bill to ban public smoking of cannabis at home
Here’s an overview of some of the pending Florida marijuana bills:
Photo elements courtesy of the user rawpixel and Philip Steffan.
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Those wishing to grow and process hemp this year must apply for a license from the Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) by April 30. Each license is valid until December 31 of the year it is issued. Graduates must reapply annually to continue in the program. An MDA license is required for individuals and businesses.
So far, about 30 people have applied for the 2026 MDA license, compared to 84 applicants last year.
These licenses are for the cultivation and processing of industrial hemp only. The hemp license application is not for adult use or for growing or selling medical cannabis. The application is also not intended for the sale of hemp-derived cannabinoid products. Information on adult use and medical cannabis is available Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) website.
There are applications of industrial hemp MDA website. Along with the online form, first-time applicants and authorized representatives must submit fingerprints and pass a criminal background check.
There are also several updates for the 2026 season. The extraction of cannabinoids from hemp is now regulated by the OCM, meaning that anyone interested in this type of processing will need a separate licence. The rates have also changed. The base cost of a hemp license is now $400, with an additional $250 per growing or processing location. The previous $250 processor license fee has been removed, but a 5% surcharge now applies to upgrades to MDA’s technology systems.
All authorized representatives listed on an application must pass a background check before being licensed. In addition, each lot of hemp must undergo THC testing before harvest, and each official sample collected by the MDA costs $100.
Source: Minnesota Department of Agriculture
Cannabis News
Colorado Marijuana Officials Announce Crackdown On Sales Of Hemp Products Amid ‘Risks To Public Safety’
The medicinal cannabis sector is struggling to take root, and another specialist processing plant is set to close. But with current regulations and a new collective industry in mind, New Zealanders are promising to reduce their reliance on imported medicinals.
There was great excitement when medicinal cannabis was legalized and then regulated in 2020, with the hope of growing the domestic sector and serving patients here and abroad. However, since then, several companies have closed their doors, including Greenfern Industries, Cannasouth and, most recently, Helius Therapeutics.
The latter plans to close the East Tāmaki plant, affecting 65 workers. It is one of the few medicinal cannabis factories in the entire nation that has a specialized processing certificate called “Good Manufacturing Practice” (GMP).
Medical Cannabis Council executive director Sally King said that under current rules, most growers did not have such certification, and could only sell raw ingredients, not processed products such as more profitable cannabis capsules.
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