The Massachusetts attorney general’s office has confirmed that it is receiving complaints from the public about applicants for a 2026 ballot initiative aimed at rolling back the state’s marijuana legalization law, with a growing number of people alleging that signature gatherers are selling misleading information about the proposal.

A staffer in Massachusetts Attorney General (D) Andrea Campbell’s office told Marijuana Moment on Friday that while they can confirm they have received those complaints, they are not at liberty to discuss whether the matter is actively being investigated.

The office “has received complaints about this matter, but we cannot confirm, deny or comment on any investigation,” they said.

“Every application has a summary of the Attorney General’s bill printed at the top,” the staffer said. “We strongly encourage voters to read the summary of any bill carefully before deciding whether to sign it.”

Massachusetts Cannabis Business Association (MCBA) David O’Brien on Friday openly accused the campaign behind the repeal initiative, the Coalition for a Healthy Massachusetts, of hiring paid petitioners to use “trickery tactics” to add signatures.

“These out-of-state groups are collecting signatures from state to state and it’s clear that they’re having trouble here in Massachusetts finding people who want to repeal our very effective cannabis laws and kill our successful cannabis industry,” O’Brien said. “This is voter fraud that people should report to their town hall.”

The Marihuana Moment campaign was reached for comment, but a representative was not immediately available.

According to the MCBA, reports of deceptive signature-gathering tactics are widespread, with paid petitioners using fake letters on other ballot measures, such as affordable housing and same-day voter registration.

A Reddit post earlier this week appeared to show such tactics, with two petitioners sitting at a table with signs about housing and voter registration, but the poster said they were collecting signatures for a marijuana repeal initiative.

Bait and switch signature request
according tou/yanki2del in the yearmassachusetts

MCBA said in a press release that “other fraudulent messages reported by voters claimed the ballot question would strengthen fentanyl testing requirements for marijuana and expand buffer zones between dispensaries and schools.”

Voters in Massachusetts have sounded the alarm about the state of social media, sharing their experiences with applicants who appear to be misrepresenting marijuana initiatives, in some cases as a way to protect young people from being criminalized for possessing cannabis.

“Just wanted to give a heads up to *anyone* interested in the legal status of cannabis in Massachusetts. While shopping this morning I was presented with a ‘legislation to protect minors from arrest with 2oz of cannabis or less’ signature form,” a post on Reddit last week. he says. “I refused to sign after reading the first line that stated that the current laws on cannabis would be repealed.”

Until then, the Prosecutor’s Office has stressed the importance of reading its summary, which should go at the top of the signature form, before signing any request. Chief Prosecutor cleared the signature collection campaign, with a summary of the petition, last month.

Another Reddit post shared on Wednesday was by a user he said “They joined a couple of interns at the grocery store who were gathering signatures for a ballot initiative to end the sale of recreational marijuana,” and “people misrepresenting what the ballot question really is when asking for signatures.”

Another post describes the user’s experience with a petition that said the initiative was “to make sure kids didn’t go to jail for minor marijuana offenses.”

“The big sign behind it read DARE to keep kids off drugs. When I read it, it was clearly a petition to recriminalize marijuana. Be careful and know what you’re signing!” they he said.

There are numerous responses to the posts, with others telling similar stories and sharing tips on how to report illegal election activity.

“Voters heading to the polls on Election Day next Tuesday, November 4th should expect signature gatherers to be at polling places across the state,” said Meg Sanders, CEO of Canna Provisions. “Know what you’re signing! Take your time and read the application language. If the collector doesn’t say what it says, don’t sign.”

The marijuana repeal campaign, for its part, said as much this month They are “on the way” to get enough signatures to put the initiative on the ballot. They are working to send 100,000 signatures by December 3rd.

When the Attorney General’s Office completed its review of 50 proposed ballot measures for 2026, it certified two versions of the proposed recriminalization campaign.

Both would eliminate the state’s adult commercial use market, maintain patient access under the medical cannabis program and continue to allow legal possession of an ounce of recreational marijuana. “Version A” contains language that would also limit THC content for medical marijuana, while “Version B” omits that policy.

The campaign continues this latest initiative without a cap.

Under the initiative, called the “Restoration of Sensible Marijuana Policy Act,” adults over the age of 21 can still possess up to one ounce of cannabis, of which only five grams can be the product of concentrated marijuana.

Possession of more than one ounce but less than two ounces would effectively be decriminalized, with violators facing a $100 fine. Adults can also continue to gift cannabis to each other without payment.

But provisions of the state’s voter-approved marijuana law that allow commercial cannabis sellers and adults to access regulated products would be repealed under the proposal.

The right of adults to cultivate cannabis at home would also be repealed.

Meanwhile, the head of Massachusetts’ marijuana regulatory agency recently suggested measures to effectively recriminalize the sale of recreational cannabis. dangerous tax revenues being used to support substance abuse treatment efforts and other public programs.

If enough signatures are validated from the initial submissions, the proposal will go before the legislature, and lawmakers will have until May 6 to pass the law or propose a replacement. If they don’t, organizers will need to collect an additional 12,429 valid voter signatures to put the measure on the ballot.

Whether the cannabis measures make the cut remains to be seen. Voters approved legalization on the 2016 ballot, and sales began two years later. And in the last decade the market has evolved and expanded. In August, Massachusetts officials reported more than $8 billion in adult marijuana sales.

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Regulators are also working to finalize the rules allow a new type of lounge license to consume cannabisthey hope to finish by October.

Separately, in May the CCC launched an online platform helping people find work, on-the-job training and networking opportunities in the state’s legal cannabis industry.

The House Joint Committee on Cannabis Policy approved the bills in August protect employment for marijuana users and expand the state’s medical cannabis programin part by adding post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and opioid use disorder to the list of qualifying conditions.

State legislators have also been pondering imposing stricter restrictions on intoxicating hemp-derived products and a plan allowing individual entities to control a greater number of cannabis establishments.

Also in Massachusetts Legislators working on state budgets butted heads with CCC officialswho said critical technology improvements can’t be made without more money from the legislature.

Meanwhile, Massachusetts lawmakers have just passed a bill establishing a pilot program for the regulated therapeutic use of psychedelics. And two committees have held hearings to discuss additional measures related to psilocybin.