On the latest episode of the Politically Speaking podcast, John Payne of Legal Missouri 2022 joined St. Louis Public Radio’s Jason Rosenbaum and Sarah Kellogg to discuss his group’s backing of Amendment 3, which would legalize recreational marijuana.
Amendment 3 would also set up a system to expunge marijuana-related offenses from people’s records and direct the proceeds to, among other things, veterans health care, drug addiction programs and public defenders.
Payne and other supporters of the proposal are banking on the notion that legal marijuana is popular among a diverse slate of voters. He pointed out that conservative-minded states like Montana have legalized the drug.
Still, Amendment 3 is not without its critics. State Rep. Ashley Bland Manlove, D-Kansas City, recorded an episode of Politically Speaking last week laying out the reasons not to vote for the constitutional amendment. You can listen to that episode here.
Here’s what Payne talked about during the show:
- How Amendment 3 would work — including the process for increasing the number of licenses that are available to participate in the cannabis industry.
- Why having a limited system with only a finite number of licenses makes sense for the state, especially since some Missourians may not be comfortable with a proliferation of marijuana-based businesses.
- Criticism that the amendment still has a limit on the amount of cannabis someone can possess, as well as allowing for fines against people who smoke marijuana in public.
- How the expungement process would work under Amendment 3.
Follow Jason Rosenbaum on Twitter: @jrosenbaum
Follow Sarah Kellogg on Twitter: @sarahkkellogg
Follow Legal Missouri 2022 on Twitter: @LegalMo22
