- Trulieve, Florida’s largest company in the cannabis distribution market, recently contributed another $5 million to the Smart and Safe Florida initiative, which aims to legalize recreational marijuana use in the state
- The $5 million benefaction is the second of its kind made by Trulieve, with the first occurring earlier this year
- The proposal lobbied by Smart and Safe Florida would allow individuals 21 and older to purchase and consume cannabis for non-medical use
Trulieve, an industry leader in the Florida cannabis market, contributed $5 million dollars to the Smart and Safe Florida campaign, according to recently-released financial reports. The initiative aims to legalize recreational, adult-use cannabis use in the state.
Trulieve’s investment is the second of its kind; the company has now contributed $10 million to Smart Safe Florida, which is attempting to place the initiative on the ballot in 2024.
Should the proposal accomplish its goal and appear on the ballot, it would allow for a vote on an amendment that would add legalized cannabis to the state constitution.
“It’s all about improving access,” Trulieve CEO Kim Rivers told The News Service of Florida in an interview. “We came into this with a mission to provide access to high-quality products that are safe and have an appropriate value proposition to give folks control over their – in the original days – medical journey. I don’t think that changes here. I mean, in effect we are at our core about expanding the opportunity for access to safe, legal product, which is what this would allow us to continue to do.”
The Smart and Safe Florida organization recently consulted a signature-gathering business to obtain over 900,000 signatures, with 891,589 verified signatures required to make the ballot. The signature verification deadline is Feb. 1, 2024.
The proposal would allow for individuals aged 21 and older to freely purchase and consume marijuana products and accessories for non-medical consumption, according to Health News Florida.
In addition, Medical Marijuana Treatment Centers and other licensed groups would be able to buy, develop, and distribute marijuana and accessories for sale.
If voters sign off on the new proposal, lawmakers still would have the final say on how the industry is structured.
Marijuana at the state level has been contentious in recent weeks. Commissioner of Agriculture and marijuana advocate Nikki Fried went on record to criticize dosage caps imposed on medical marijuana users in Florida.
“Unveiling a rule cutting the allowable preparations and extracts dosage by 69.4 percent with less than three days notice is not just thoughtless, it’s irresponsible,” said Fried. “It has caused chaos, confusion, and rightful panic among patients and providers.”
The August emergency rule set a 70-day total supply limit of 24,500 mg of THC for non-smokable marijuana and sets dosage caps for varying forms of consumption like edibles, inhalation, and tinctures.
Fried claimed that the sudden ruling imposed “severe harm” on Florida’s 700,000 medical cannabis patients, calling it an attempt to “circumvent the will of the American people.” Furthermore, Fried stated that the rule would not have passed had the state sought out opinions from licensed medical providers and advisors.