The year 2023 could be when a budding weed industry makes further progress in the Midwest, with talks of upcoming ballot measures and initiatives to legalize marijuana in three Midwestern states.
As of this year, 21 states and Washington D.C. have now legalized recreational use, and 31 states no longer prosecute someone for possessing small amounts of the drug. Public support for weed is on the rise; 90% of U.S. adults agree that marijuana should be legal for at least medical use, a 2021 Pew Research Center survey shows.
On a federal level, President Joe Biden has continued to grant clemency for people with marijuana or other federal drug convictions on their records since issuing a mass marijuana pardon last October. He has also directed his administration to review marijuana’s federal classification as a dangerous “Schedule 1” drug.
Recreational marijuana legalization was a hot-ticket item on five states’ ballots during last November’s midterm election, though voters only said yes in two of them: Maryland and Missouri. Legalization went into effect for adults over 21 in Maryland last month and will get instated in Missouri on July 1. Rhode Island also legalized recreational use last year, and Alabama, Mississippi and Kentucky are all launching legal medical marijuana programs this year.
https://heartlandsignal.com/2023/01/10/three-midwestern-states-may-see-legal-weed-in-2023/
