Skip to content
Sections
  • Obituaries
  • eEdition
  • Popular Content
  • Submit a Tip
Dispatch Mobile Logo
Share
Subscribe
Login
LoginSubscribe
May 30, 2023
  • QUICK LINKS
  • Obituaries
  • eEdition
  • Popular Content
  • Submit a Tip
  • News
  • Columbus & Lowndes County
  • Starkville & Oktibbeha County
  • West Point & Clay County
  • Area
  • State
  • National
  • Business
  • Sports
  • High School Sports
  • College Sports
  • Local Columns
  • eEdition
  • Opinions
  • Local Columns
  • Letters to the Editor
  • Roses & Thorns
  • Dispatch Editorials
  • Obituaries
  • Lifestyles
  • Columns
  • Entertainment
  • Food
  • Transitions & Announcements
  • Community
  • Religion
  • Classifieds
  • Photo Galleries
  • Public Records
  • Building Permits
  • Marriages & Divorces
May 30, 2023
Dispatch Logo

Open eyes, open minds.

Home » News » Local legislators support medical marijuana effort

Local legislators support medical marijuana effort

Governor has been asked to call special session on potential program

By Slim Smith • September 25, 2021

 • 5 mins to read

Local legislators support medical marijuana effort
medical marijuana and a doctor's prescription

Golden Triangle lawmakers say they support the effort to pass legislation to begin a medical marijuana program.

Whether they support the proposal hammered out by negotiators from both chambers of the Legislature this week largely depends on the details which legislators said they have yet to learn.

Kabir Karriem

“To be honest, I’m still investigating, trying to find out what’s in it,” said Rep. Kabir Karriem (D, Columbus). “There are some concerns I have. To me, this is our own shot to get it right, so I hope what’s in this bill is faithful to the initiative the voters passed.”

Negotiators from the state House and Senate announced Thursday they had agreed on a bill and will ask Gov. Tate Reeves to call a special session of the Legislature to vote on it.

The move comes after the Mississippi Supreme Court struck down a voter-initiative passed by a 3-to-1 margin in the November election to create a medical marijuana program.

The plan expected to be presented in the special session differs in many ways from the one passed by voters.

Dana McLean

“I’m really not sure if I can support this version or not,” said Rep. Dana McLean (R, Columbus). “I was hopeful that we would have a more conservative approach than the one in the (voter) initiative that passed, and we could amend it and tweak it from there.”

Among McLean’s objections to the proposed bill is language that would allow medical marijuana to be smoked, something she said she opposed during an appearance before the Columbus Rotary Club in July.

“That’s one of the things I was hoping wouldn’t be in this legislation,” McLean said. “I think allowing it to be smoked makes it harder on law enforcement to manage. I would have much rather seen it used in other forms, like maybe an inhaler like you have with asthma.”

Rep. Rob Roberson (R, Starkville) said one part of the planned legislation he favors is a sliding fee scale for those who want to grow or dispense medical marijuana.

“From what I understand, the fees vary depending on volume,” Roberson said. “I like that idea because I don’t want to see big out-of-state corporations being the only ones who can be involved on the business side. I think this allows people in the state to be a part of it if it’s something they want to pursue.”

Rob Roberson

Roberson said he was also concerned about rumors that the gun rights for those who applied for a medical marijuana card could be jeopardized.

“Fortunately, our Second Amendment rights aren’t going to be affected by this,” Roberson said.

Sen. Angela Turner-Ford (D, West Point) said she, too, was concerned about who would be allowed to pursue medical marijuana as a business opportunity.

Angela Turner-Ford

“My primary concern is making sure this is a business and industry where there aren’t too many barriers for people who are interested in getting into the business side of marijuana,” she said. “There’s still a lot I don’t know about this bill, so it’s hard to say if I will support it or not. I’ve always been for medical marijuana, but I didn’t support the bill the Legislature planned to compete with the one the voters supported. I would hope that this new bill would reflect what the voters passed. That’s all I’m going to say.”

Sen. Chuck Younger (R, Columbus) said he is confident he will vote for the bill if a special session is called.

“I’m for medical marijuana and I’ll vote for it,” he said. “I really can’t see a reason not to. The FDA has approved far more powerful drugs than marijuana. To me, marijuana is a lot safer than a lot of these pain pills we have out here.”

Chuck Younger

A provision in the bill allows cities and counties to opt out of the program, but voters will be allowed to overturn local government bans through a referendum.

“I think there are a lot of conservative communities that may end up opting out,” McLean said.

Roberson thinks otherwise.

“I can’t see why that would happen,” he said. “All people would have to do is go to the next county. Why would a city want to give up the sales tax from this?”

McLean said she is also concerned the market will be oversaturated with growers and dispensaries.

“In Utah, they have a limit on how many dispensaries there can be and I like that idea, even though you do run into the free-market question,” she said.

It’s another aspect of free-market influences on a medical marijuana program that concerns Karriem.

Because marijuana is a Schedule 1 narcotic, it is not covered by private health insurance, Medicaid or Medicare.

“It concerns me that poor people may not have access to medical marijuana,” he said. “I would hope that the program would do something to make it affordable and make the business side so that ordinary Mississippians can be a part of the industry.”

Slim Smith is a columnist and feature writer for The Dispatch. His email address is ssmith@cdispatch.com.

You can help your community

Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.

Subscribe

READER FAVORITES

  • Shooter, victim in fatal Inferno shooting had violent history

    By Zack Plair • 5 hours ago

  • ‘Improvements are hard sometimes’

    By Abigail Sipe Rochester • 9 hours ago

  • $6K raised from 5K to support library’s autism resources

    By Brian Jones • 9 hours ago


Popular

Shooter, victim in fatal Inferno shooting had violent history

May 29, 2023

‘Improvements are hard sometimes’

May 29, 2023

Man arrested for armed robbery at convenience store

May 29, 2023

$6K raised from 5K to support library’s autism resources

May 29, 2023



On This Day 2022

Featured Podcast

The C Dispatch Podcast

Sections

  • News
  • Sports
  • Opinions
  • Lifestyles
  • Obituaries

Info

  • About
  • Contact
  • Submit a Tip
  • Terms & Service
  • Popular Content

Contact

Main Switchboard:

(662) 328-2424

Physical Address:

516 Main Street
Columbus, MS 39701

Mailing Address:

PO Box 511
Columbus, MS 39701

cdispatch.com © 2023 – The Commerical Dispatch

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Cookie settingsACCEPT
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT