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Florida Marijuana Legalization Campaign Sues State Over Alleged ‘Unlawful’ Attempt To Invalidate 200,000 Signatures For 2026 Ballot Initiative

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4 months ago

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A Florida campaign working to put a marijuana legalization initiative on the 2026 ballot is suing the state for allegedly taking “illegal” steps to force it to invalidate about 200,000 voter signatures it submitted.

Smart & Safe Florida filed suit against Secretary of State Cord Byrd and Inspector of Elections Mark Earley last week in Florida’s Second Judicial Circuit, alleging that the secretary’s signature verification criteria invalidate petitions that do not include the full text of the initiative.

That rule “was not anticipated by the state” regarding voting requirements, the campaign said. However, the Secretary earlier this month “ordered all Supervisors of Elections to invalidate more than 200,000 petitions from the Plaintiff, which the Supervisors had specifically verified against statutory criteria.”

A spokesperson for the campaign told Marijuana Moment on Monday that the lawsuit “requires the Secretary of State to follow Florida law and prevent the State from denying the voices of Florida voters who have signed petitions.”

“We’re asking the courts to enforce Florida law, it’s that simple,” they said. “The state is trying wrongly after changing the rules and denying these registered voters their voice in the process.”

The lawsuit, first notify Politico noted that the secretary’s decision to target the cancellation of petitions “comes less than four months before the February 1, 2026, ballot verification deadline.”

At the beginning of the secretariat Smart & Safe sent a letter of resignation to Florida in Marchadvising the campaign on the interpretation of the rules regarding the inclusion of the full text of the proposed initiative in its petitions for signatures, “without specifying any statute, regulation or order” to support its implementation.

“While the Secretary has delegated authority to establish the style and requirements of a citizen initiative form, he does not have the authority to create and implement additional verification criteria not provided for by the Legislature,” the lawsuit states. “No Florida statute expressly or impliedly requires the Full Text Form to be given or shown to a voter before signing a petition.”

Despite legal questions about the revised signature-gathering criteria, the campaign voluntarily complied with the secretary’s directive and began including the full text of the petition. But more than six months after the initial contact, Division of Elections Director Maria Matthews sent an email on Oct. 3 to all of the state’s 63 county supervisors “to rescind any Smart & Safe petition directed at them” before adding the full text of the voter-signed initiative.

“Although the Clerk intends for voters to have the opportunity to read the Full Text Form before signing the petition, there is no statutory or regulatory requirement that a voter verify and count the request to read the full text,” the lawsuit states. “The Secretary’s Directive is imprecise, illegal, ultra vires and void.”

“Due to the Secretary’s Directive, Smart & Safe questions its rights and obligations as a sponsor of the Proposed Amendment,” he added.

The campaign is asking the court to affirm that the secretary lacks legal authority to “impose additional verification criteria” for petition signatures, order the state to “invalidate otherwise valid petitions” under the secretary’s directive, restore the validity of petitions that were allegedly invalidated, and provide any other relief deemed necessary.

Beyond the legal challenge over the signature criteria, there’s another curious wrinkle in how the state has navigated the initiative so far, as the secretary of state apparently missed a statutory deadline to submit the measure to the Florida Supreme Court for legal review after meeting the initial threshold of 220,016 valid signatures.

According to the state Division of Elections, Smart & Safe Florida has collected 662,543 valid signatures as of last count. It needs to verify 880,062 signatures by February 1, 2026 to be voted on. In June, the state confirmed the campaign enough has been collected to initiate a fiscal and judicial review of the initiative.

This is the second vote of the campaign. They successfully got a vote on a version of the 2024 initiative, and a majority voted to pass it, but not enough to meet the state’s 60 percent threshold to pass a constitutional amendment.

An estimated 200,000 applications could be at risk of being invalidated, and with limited time to make up the gap, the campaign could be in jeopardy if the court upholds the state’s mandate to impose new signature criteria.

In the background of this case, in August a federal judge ruled against Smart & Safe Florida—Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) to provide “full relief” from provisions of a law he signed to impose other severe restrictions on signature gathering.

Although the law DeSantis signed in May was not directly aimed at the cannabis initiative, there has been concern among supporters that it could jeopardize an already complex and expensive process to gather enough signatures to put it on the ballot. That’s because it would block non-residents and non-citizens from collecting signatures for ballot measures.

In March, 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.

A grand jury is now taking testimony on that case ahead of possible indictments.

The governor said this in February The latest measure to legalize marijuana is in “big trouble” with the state Supreme CourtHe announced that it will be blocked from going before the voters next 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.

The revised version of Smart & Safe Florida is expected to 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 opponents of the 2024 push.

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.”

—
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.

Learn more about our marijuana bill tracking and become a Patreon supporter to gain access
—

Last year, 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 in 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.

However, the results echo another recent poll by the Florida Chamber of Commerce, a proactive opponent of legalization, which found a majority in favor of reform among likely voters (53 percent). but not enough to be able to set the 60 percent condition.

Another poll of Republican voters in Florida showed only 40 percent of that demographic said they would vote for it of the legalization proposal.

Also, a GOP senator from Florida recently claimed this the legalization campaign “tricked” Trump into supporting the 2024 measure misleading him and the general public about key provisions.

Before the election, Trump said he was sorry last September The 3rd Amendment “would have been great” for the state.

Before commenting, Trump met with Truliev CEO Kim Riversas well as a GOP state senator who favors reform.

Meanwhile, there are medical marijuana officials in Florida actively expunging the records of patients and caregivers with drug-related criminal records. The policy is part of the sweeping budget legislation that DeSantis signed into law earlier this year. The aforementioned provisions address the State Department of Health (DOH). void the records of medical marijuana patients and caregivers if convicted of drug offenses, or pleaded guilty or no contest.

Read the Smart & Safe Florida campaign the case Against the state petition criteria:

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New partnership to expand greenhouse drone distribution across Europe

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12 hours ago

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February 6, 2026

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GeoCue welcomes MOST Robotics to its global distribution network. Based in Germany and serving customers throughout Germany, Austria and Switzerland, MOST Robotics will offer TrueView GO LiDAR solutions and LP360 software, from GeoCue, to surveying, construction, forestry, agricultural and industrial inspection professionals looking for a complete and reliable workflow from data capture to delivery.

Founded in 2021 by Valentin Möller and Lennart Stollberg, MOST Robotics builds on deep UAV experience since 2015, offering integrated turnkey drone and sensor solutions, supported by technical consulting and first-class customer support. Their team works closely with end users to ensure technology works in real-world conditions, from flight planning to endpoint cloud processing, a full-service company for individual solutions.

MOST Robotics is expanding its portfolio of handheld SLAM LiDAR and LP360 software to directly respond to customer needs, especially for projects where flight restrictions, dense vegetation or indoor environments make aerial collection difficult. With TrueView GO and LP360, customers can complement drone surveys with ground-based SLAM capture, process aerial LiDAR and produce high-quality photogrammetric output. This approach supports rapid and accurate classification of large data sets and the creation of highly accurate digital terrain models, helping to reduce office processing time while improving the final quality of delivery.

© MOST Robotics

Valentin Möller, CEO of MOST Robotics, commented: “GeoCue makes UAV LiDAR and SLAM bridges in a way that matches how our customers work in the real world. We spend a lot of time in the field with customers, which gives us practical feedback and clear ideas on what needs to be improved. GeoCue is open to this kind of input, and we’re excited to help shape each of our customers’ missions.”

Samuel Flick, GeoCue’s European Sales Manager, added: “We are delighted to welcome MOST Robotics to the GeoCue distribution network. Their technical depth and customer-first approach make them a strong partner as we continue to grow the LiDAR market in Europe. We look forward to supporting their team as they expand access to the TrueView product line, including aerial, handheld and LiDAR 360 mobile device software.”

For more information:
MOST robotics
https://mostrobotics.com/

GeoCue
https://geocue.com/

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USDA-APHIS grants non-regulated status to two gene-edited hemp varieties

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1 day ago

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February 5, 2026

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USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) recently issued regulatory status review responses for two new gene-edited hemp varieties, determining that they are not subject to federal regulation under 7 CFR part 340. Developed by researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, these gene-edited plants have been found to have no increased risk of plant pests compared to conventional hemp. This federal clearance marks an important milestone in easing the path from laboratory to commercial cultivation of precision-bred industrial crops.

© Crop Innovation Center of Wisconsin-MadisonBadger PMR hemp variety gene-edited

Badger PMR (Dust Resistant) has full dust resistance, and Badger Zero (Cannabinoid Free) is cannabinoid free. The main innovation involves the creation of hemp varieties that are unable to produce THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), the psychoactive compound found in cannabis. Using CRISPR gene-editing technology to turn off specific genes responsible for THC production, the UW-Madison team has solved a major hurdle for the industry. This genetic certainty prevents crops from being “hot” — the term used when THC levels accidentally exceed the legal limit of 0.3 percent — which previously forced farmers to destroy entire fields to comply with federal law.

Beyond THC removal, researchers have also engineered varieties with higher concentrations of CBG (cannabigerol), a non-psychoactive cannabinoid valued for its potential therapeutic benefits. These advances are expected to stabilize the hemp market, providing growers with reliable, high-value and legal-compliant varieties. With the regulatory green light from the USDA, these precision-bred hemp lines are poised to revitalize the industry, providing a safer and more profitable future for farmers across the United States.

For more information:
International Service for the Acquisition of Agricultural Biotechnology Applications
Email: (email protected)
isaaa.org/default.asp



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Kentucky Governor Announces Medical Marijuana Gummies Are Now Available, While Pushing Lawmakers To Approve New Qualifying Conditions

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1 day ago

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February 5, 2026

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Kentucky’s governor is urging lawmakers to give more patients legal access to medical marijuana, announcing that cannabis gummies can now be purchased at state-licensed dispensaries.

Gov. Andy Beshear (D) said Thursday that his administration has sent a letter urging legislative leadership to pass a bill that lists ALS, Parkinson’s disease, Crohn’s disease, sickle cell anemia, fibromyalgia, glaucoma, terminal illnesses and other conditions as conditions for medical cannabis.

“In most other states that have a medical marijuana program, these are conditions that are covered, and conditions that are deemed appropriate by our board of physicians and counselors,” he said. “Expanding the list could help the approximately 430,000 Kentuckians who currently lack access but face these challenges.”

The governor said state officials are “making great strides” in expanding the medical marijuana program to “increase access for those who are already eligible.”

“We currently have 510 registered professionals and over 18,500 approved cards, and those numbers continue to grow,” Beshear said, adding that regulators are making “steady progress” in accepting businesses at every step of the cannabis supply chain.

“As the supply chain expands, patients are starting to see more options online,” he said. “We can announce that gummies are on the market in Kentucky and showing progress in communities across Kentucky.”




The governor’s latest update comes about a month after he took the podium and said “not happy” with the time it’s taken to roll out the state’s medical marijuana program—but predicts that the pace of patient access will “significantly increase” in 2026.

Also last month, Beshear said two more dispensaries will open their doors “once additional product becomes available.” The The state’s first medical cannabis plant was launched in December.

The governor, who has long championed cannabis reform, he anticipated a market launch that monthwhile claiming that medical marijuana will help thousands of patients find an alternative to opioids for pain management.

He at the end of October it passed the milestone of registering 15,000 patientsbut that has grown significantly in recent weeks.

Beshear previously acknowledged that “it’s taken longer than we would have liked” to sustain the industry since he signed off on legalizing medical marijuana in 2023.

Considering this delayed implementation, he signed an executive order this year to waive renewal fees for patients who get the cards so that they are not charged again before the stores open. And another order he signed to provide protections for qualified patients who obtain medical marijuana outside of Kentucky “will remain in place.”

Beshear announced separately that in May the state launched a new online directory that allows people to see where medicinal cannabis will open next to them

He noted that the state is working to provide access to patients “as soon as possible,” which includes speeding up the licensing process. Last January, so did the governor ceremoniously issued the first medical marijuana cards in the commonwealth.

—
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.

Learn more about our marijuana bill tracking and become a Patreon supporter to gain access
—

Meanwhile, the governors sent a letter to Kentucky’s congressional delegation last yearurging them to “take decisive action to protect the constitutional rights of our law-abiding medical cannabis patients” by repealing the federal ban on possession of firearms by marijuana users.

Bipartisan Kentucky senators introduced similar legislation asked the federal representatives of the state to take corrective measuresBeshear said he agrees but would I would like to see even more significant changes at the federal level.

The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) warned Kentucky residents that in 2024, if they choose to participate in the state’s medical marijuana program, they will be prohibited from buying or possessing firearms under federal law.

Health professionals have been able to Patients began to evaluate the recommendations from the beginning of last December.

While there are currently no operational dispensaries for patients, Beshear also confirmed that an executive order he signed in 2023 will be in place in the interim, protecting patients. Those with medical cannabis purchased from licensed out-of-state retailers.

In the November 2024 election, Kentucky also saw more than 100 cities and counties pass local ordinances to allow medical cannabis businesses in their jurisdictions. The governor said the election results show that “the jury is no longer out” on the issue this is clearly supported by voters across party and geographic lines.

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