Alaska may soon become the third state to legalize recreational marijuana, The Associated Press reports, as a citizens' group recently submitted more than 46,000 signatures to the state election office in hopes of bringing the initiative before voters in the Aug. 19 primary.
"It's clear that Alaskans are eager to have an opportunity to express their displeasure with the current system and make a change," one of sponsors, Tim Hinterberger, a professor in the School of Medical Education at the University of Alaska Anchorage, told The Associated Press.
The citizens' group needs around 30,000 verified signatures from at least 7 percent of voters in at least 30 House districts.
Back in 1975, the Alaskan Supreme Court ruled that banning small amounts of marijuana for home use was a violation of the constitutional right to privacy, though did not specify exactly how much one could legally possess. In 1982, it was determined by the Alaska Legislature that four ounces was allowable so long as it was not for sale or distribution, and later, the amount was reduced to one ounce, and in 2006, small amounts of pot were re-criminalized, making the state's relationship with the drug a complex one.
Alaska Division of Elections Director Gail Fenumiai said in an email to The Associated Press that State election officials have 60 days to accept or deny the new initiative for the ballot.
Hinterberger told the AP that the plan is to "remove any ambiguity" and bring statue in Alaska "into accordance with the 1975 Supreme Court decision and the 1982 possession of one ounce."
