Ohio marijuana legalization proposal rejected by Attorney General Dave Yost

An effort to legalize marijuana in Ohio hit a setback Thursday.

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost rejected a summary of a law proposed by a group calling itself the Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol.

Yost's job was to decide whether the petition was a “fair and truthful" description of the proposed law. He cited seven deficiencies in the submitted language but said there could be more.

For example, the summary fails to explain the purposes of the "cannabis social equity and jobs program" proposed in the bill and doesn't make it clear that adults were limited to possessing six marijuana plants in addition to growing them at home.

"In total, the summary does not properly advise a potential signer of a proposed measure’s character and limitations," Yost wrote.

The "Act to Control and Regulate Adult Use Cannabis" would allow adults age 21 and older to buy, possess, grow and use marijuana. Ohio's medical marijuana businesses, several of which are backing the plan, could automatically get licenses for the recreational side.

The proposal is an initiated statute, meaning it would change state law and not the state constitution. The attorney general's approval is the first step in a long process that could end with the November 2022 election.

It's fairly common for a petition submission to be rejected the first time. The group is reviewing Yost's decision and plans to resubmit language in the near future, spokesman Tom Haren said.

Once approved by the attorney general, the Ohio Ballot Board, led by Secretary of State Frank LaRose, will decide whether the petition contains just one proposed law or multiple laws. Then, supporters will have to collect 132,887 signatures of registered Ohio voters to put the measure before the Legislature.

Lawmakers will then have four months to pass, reject or pass an amended version of the statute. If they don't pass the bill, supporters can collect another 132,887 signatures to place it on a statewide ballot, likely in November 2022.

Jackie Borchardt is the bureau chief for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.