The report goes on to say
A Senate committee is sponsoring a massive bill that would legalize marijuana for medical reasons.
The bill was filed Friday, one day after the deadline for filing new bills. Lawmakers agreed to waive the rules and allow the bill because Secretary of State Shantel Krebs on Wednesday rejected a proposed ballot measure to legalize medical marijuana.
“They came in and asked us to waive the rules so they could get it filed today,” said Sen. Arthur Rusch, a Vermillion Republican and the vice chair of the Senate Health and Human Services Committee.
Committee-sponsored bills typically have more legislative support and a better chance at becoming law. But this one is not a typical committee bill because it was submitted as a favor.
It would allow a registered cardholder to possess up to three ounces of cannabis. Those suffering from a number of chronic diseases would qualify to become cardholders.
“Certainly I am more strongly opposed to recreational marijuana,” he said. “In some states medical marijuana legislation has been step-one toward step-two, recreational marijuana, and I think we have enough difficulty with legal, through alcohol, and illegal drug abuse that we don’t need to introduce another legal drug the will cause more societal problems. We have enough of them.”
Full Report: http://www.argusleader.com/story/blogs/jonathanellis/2016/02/05/cannabis-bill-comes-after-deadline/79901106/
Also Reported at SDSPB http://listen.sdpb.org/post/medical-marijuana-bill-introduced-ballot-petition-rejected#stream/0
