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Legalization of marijuana is a great idea in California, and not just because it would make life easier, cheaper, and safer for pot smokers (and everyone else). It could also make the state quite a bit richer than it already is. The office of the state’s Legislative Analyst reported in August that two propositions on the November ballot – including ...

The group behind a proposal to legalize marijuana for recreation in California sued opponents of the measure in July, saying they were trying to put misleading scare language on the ballot to discourage “yes” votes. Backers of the Adult Use of Marijuana Act (AUMA), a ballot initiative that would make it legal for adults 21 and older to buy, possess, ...

So far, at least, the numbers are stark: Activists pushing to legalize marijuana for recreation in California have raised more than $9 million to fund their ballot campaign. Opponents, meanwhile, haven’t come close to that number. But now a national anti-cannabis group says that’s about to change. Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM) is a national lobbying group run by longtime ...

Activists pushing to legalize marijuana for recreation in California scored a major endorsement in July, as the state’s second-largest medical association gave its support to the Adult Use of Marijuana Act (AUMA). The AUMA is a proposed law that will appear on the statewide ballot in November. It has strong public support, and if it passes – as expected – ...

California Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, one of the most prominent supporters of efforts to legalize marijuana in November, urged his fellow political leaders to support the cause and stop trying to avoid a fight. In an interview with The Huffington Post during the Democratic National Convention in July, Newsom, a Democrat, said lawmakers and other politicians need to take a ...

Legal marijuana is coming to California, one way or another. It will probably arrive Nov. 8, when voters are expected to pass a ballot initiative legalizing the drug for recreation. If not, reform will get here soon enough. But what would that mean for the Golden State and its residents? How much would full cannabis legalization actually change California in ...

Police in California are arresting far fewer people on felony marijuana charges in the wake of a vote to reclassify those crimes as misdemeanors. Voters passed Prop. 47 in 2014, converting several cannabis-related felonies into misdemeanors. Data recently released by the office of California Attorney General Kamala Harris show the vote has led to a sharp decline in felony marijuana ...

The struggling Central California city of Coalinga approved a groundbreaking agreement with a medical marijuana company in July, agreeing to let the business use a vacant jail as a cannabis production plant. The vote will give Ocean Grow Extracts access to the empty Claremont Custody Center, a local holding facility that closed in recent years, where the company will manufacture ...

The push to legalize marijuana in California gained an important ally in June, as a Marin County congressman endorsed a public initiative that will likely appear on the ballot in November. U.S. Rep. Jared Huffman, a San Rafael Democrat, announced June 9 that he would back the Adult Use of Marijuana Act, a proposed law that would allow cannabis for ...

The California branch of the American Civil Liberties Union has endorsed a push to legalize marijuana statewide. The ACLU of California announced in June that it is backing the Adult Use of Marijuana Act (AUMA), a public initiative that would make cannabis legal for recreational use. The law would create, regulate, and tax a legal marijuana industry while allowing adults ...