Educating or politicking? ... Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich issued a legal opinion last week saying elected officials can use their offices and resources to educate the public about why they think marijuana should not be legalized in 2016. Brnovich issued the new opinion in response to an inquiry from Yavapai County Attorney Sheila Polk and Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery. Both are vocal critics of legalization and Polk is leading an effort to defeat an initiative led by the Marijuana Policy Project to legalize marijuana for recreational use. [continues 490 words]
Medical marijuana not only brought intense debate to Arizona - it spawned the Voter Protection Act, reviled by many Arizona lawmakers as a source of the state's budget woes. When voters in 1996 approved the use of medical marijuana, lawmakers and the governor responded by gutting the law. That sent medical-marijuana supporters back to the ballot for a do-over in 1998. But the second time around, supporters of legalized-medical marijuana also asked voters to approve a measure that would severely limit legislative tinkering with anything approved at the ballot box. [continues 223 words]
