SJC orders AG to update marijuana ballot question
The Supreme Judicial Court on Wednesday ordered Attorney General Maura Healey to make some changes to the ballot initiative that would legalize the adult use of marijuana in Massachusetts.
In a decision handed down Wednesday morning, SJC Chief Justice Ralph Gants wrote that "the title assigned to the petition and the one-sentence statement describing the effect of a 'yes' vote are misleading," but the court concluded that Healey's office "did not err in certifying the petition for inclusion on the ballot," as opponents had argued.
The title of the petition, "Marijuana Legalization," is "unfair and clearly misleading," Gants wrote, because the petition also relates to the regulation and taxation of cannabis and cannabis products. The SJC ruled that the title should be changed to "Legalization, Regulation, and Taxation of Marijuana." The one-sentence summary that describes the effect of a 'yes' vote is also "clearly misleading in some respects" because it does not specify that THC, the psychoactive component of marijuana responsible for the high, and edible products that contain THC would also become legal if the initiative passes.
"The original statement is misleading in that it fails to make clear that the new law will allow, in limited amounts, not only the possession and use of marijuana but also the possession and use of products containing marijuana concentrate, including edible products," Gants wrote. "The reference to 'marijuana products' in the second clause of the sentence ... does not adequately inform voters that the proposed act would legalize the sale of edible marijuana products, especially where the summary fails to make this as clear as it could."
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