TALLAHASEE, Fla. – After the proposal was shut down by voters in 2024, a recreational marijuana amendment may once more be on the ballot in Florida this November.
While there are plenty of amendments being brought up by lawmakers at the moment, it’s not the only way for such a proposal to go before voters.
Citizens also have the option to put forth their own amendment initiatives — and that’s exactly what’s happening right now.
One such initiative — dubbed “Adult Personal Use of Marijuana” — was filed by Smart & Safe Florida, which also put together the Amendment 3 initiative in 2024.
[BELOW: Amendment 3 in Florida falls short of 60% voter threshold]
This proposal would make several changes to the marijuana protections in the Florida Constitution, including the following:
- Allows residents 21 years of age or older to buy and use marijuana for their own personal use
- Allows medical marijuana treatment centers and licensed marijuana businesses to acquire, process, and sell marijuana for personal use
- Explicitly prohibits the marketing of marijuana to children
- Explicitly prohibits smoking and vaping marijuana in public spaces
But before the proposal can make its way onto the ballot, it will first need to clear the signature requirements.
As of Thursday, the ballot initiative has over 675,000 signatures.
In all, it will need just over 880,000 — roughly 8% of the voters in at least one-half of Florida’s congressional districts and in the state as a whole during the last presidential election.
[BELOW: Has Florida law changed when it comes to smoking marijuana in your car?]
Even if the initiative lands on the ballot, though, it will still need to garner at least 60% of support from voters statewide during the election in November. During the last attempt in 2024, it only managed to receive 56%.
Critics of the measure, including Vote No on Amendment 3, claim the amendment was written to benefit the existing marijuana industry while making it difficult for individuals and small businesses to profit from it.
Trulieve, the state’s leading provider of medical marijuana, contributed nearly 92% of the $101 million raised by Smart and Safe Florida to place the amendment on the 2024 ballot and promote it.
Furthermore, the state’s attorney general announced dozens of new criminal investigations into possible fraud associated with the campaign, including issues with mismatched signatures.
“Recently obtained documents show that Smart & Safe Florida knew about dozens of fraudsters turning in over 21,000 petitions and failed to inform law enforcement,” Attorney General James Uthmeier said. “Florida’s Constitution is not for sale, and we will not allow a mega marijuana corporation to hijack our state’s governing document.”
[BELOW: Florida attorney general touts 46 new investigations into marijuana amendment petitions]
Uthmeier has long been an opponent of the recreational marijuana amendment. He led Gov. DeSantis’ efforts to defeat the amendment in 2024 when he was the governor’s chief of staff.
The group filed a lawsuit Friday, accusing Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd of violating state law by not publicly reporting updates on valid petition signatures. The group said the number of signatures has not changed in the past two months.
Smart and Safe Florida has until Feb. 1 to submit all of its petition signatures to get on the November ballot.
The Florida Supreme Court will also hear arguments on Feb. 5 on Uthmeier’s challenge to keep the amendment off the ballot.