ANN ARBOR (WKZO) –Until recently the marijuana movement in Michigan was made up mainly of pot users and their attorneys.
Now that Colorado and Washington State have shown that there is big money in marijuana, groups that know their way around a ballot proposal have begun to press for legalization.
Some of the members of the Michigan Cannabis Coalition are republicans who say they don’t smoke weed.
The group has just launched a crowd-funding effort to finance a petition drive.
Spokesman Matt Marsden says it will be a new voluntary revenue source for the state that most won’t pay. He says in states where recreational marijuana has been established, about 11 to 14% indulge.
Their pitch hits all the right buttons. They say tax revenues from dope sales can finance Public Safety, roads and schools. They say Ohio may also legalize recreational grass this fall, and that would mean a steady flow of Michigan dollars out of state.
Those are all buttons that gets the public’s attention.
Two other groups with slightly different approaches to the issue may also fire up ballot initiatives to legalize marijuana soon.
