Poll: Should Wyoming Legalize Weed, Or Is It Time To Crackdown?
As of Jan. 1, 2022, it will be legal to purchase recreational marijuana in Montana.
It's been legal in Colorado for quite some time.
Voters in South Dakota voted in 2020 to legalize the recreational use of marijuana, but that state's Supreme Court recently struck down that ballot initiative on technical grounds, so for now, it's illegal. But supporters of recreational weed say they will bring another proposal before state voters in 2022. Medical marijuana is legal in South Dakota.
All told, Wyoming is among a dwindling number of states that haven’t approved marijuana in some form. Thirty-six states now allow medical marijuana, and 18 have approved recreational marijuana. In Wyoming, supporters of a couple of pot ballot proposals--one legalizing marijuana, the other decriminalizing [but not legalizing] are hoping to get the issues before voters in time for the November General Election. It's worth noting, however, that the proposal for ballot initiatives in Wyoming makes it notoriously difficult to win final approval.
A bill to legalize both recreational and marijuana won approval from a Wyoming House Committee in 2021. But legislative leaders allowed the bill to die by not scheduling it for consideration by the full house in time to meet a deadline.
So far no pot bills have been formally filed for the 2022 legislative session, which gets underway in February in Cheyenne.
But of course, not everyone is on board with the idea of legalizing marijuana. There are some, especially in the law enforcement community, who are dead set against the idea. Concerns include the controversial notion that pot is a ''gateway drug'' that leads to the use of harder drugs. Many pot opponents raise concerns about stoned drivers on Wyoming highways and still consider marijuana a dangerous drug that has negative long-term effects on users, possibly including mental illness. They also argue that pot generally leads to an unmotivated workforce that can't compete in today's world.
So...is it time to legalize weed in Wyoming? Or should the current laws stay in place?
Perhaps you feel that it's time for a crackdown to keep legal weed from surrounding states from flooding Wyoming? Would you support going the opposite direction from legalization to send a message that weed isn't welcome in the Cowboy State?
Take our poll and give us your opinion!