Will recreational cannabis soon be legal in Florida?

A massive campaign to secure a referendum to legalize recreational cannabis in Florida as early as 2020 was announced on Thursday. The project is backed by cannabis giant Med Men, one of California's largest cannabis companies. Legalizing recreational cannabis would allow adults 21 and older to purchase and possess up to 2.5 ounces of cannabis.

However, should the measure pass, it will not be possible for Floridians to grow their own cannabis. MedMen, part of the New York Medical Cannabis Industry Association, had sent a controversial memo to New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo last December, in which the company claimed that local cultivation encouraged illegal sales and endangered cannabis consumers by making it difficult to monitor pesticide content. The company currently has a medical cannabis dispensary in West Palm Beach, Florida, and a medicine delivery service in Orlando. The company's website states that it plans to open 12 new outlets in the state.

The measure will be supported by the dispensary chain's political committee.« Make it Legal Florida« recorded earlier this month. «Make it Legal Florida» can already count on the support of Florida Democrat-elect Nikki Fried, Commissioner of Agriculture, who is herself a medical cannabis cardholder, and supports the right of voters to choose how the substance should be regulated. Fried is also spearheading the creation of Florida's hemp industry regulations, following the passage of the Farm Bill in December 2018. Since Florida legalized hemp, local law enforcement has debated whether arrests for cannabis possession could be made legally, given the state's inability to verify the difference between hemp and cannabis containing THC, the psychoactive molecule. Attorney General Jack Campbell announced that his office would no longer prosecute such cases.

But the measure has its critics. This effort will have to compete with « Sensitive Florida« a campaign launched to counter «Make it Legal Florida». The Regulate Florida pressure group has already amassed over 80,000 signatures, enough to draw the attention of the state's judicial review.