After a heated debate and accusation of legislators profiteering and lying, Mississippi’s House ended a Senate reform focused on creating separate legislation from the state’s medical cannabis program that voters overwhelmingly approved in the federal constitution during November.
However, on Wednesday, the Senate attempted a Hail Mary on the cannabis legislation. Legislators incorporated the Senate measure’s text into a House legislation addressing research on CBD oil for patients who’re prone to seizures or other maladies, called the ‘Harper Grace’s Law’. The revised reform that would restore the Senate’s medical marijuana proposal got a 29-19 ‘pass’ vote, with lieutenant Governor Delbert Horseman overruling complaints that the change inappropriately changed an unassociated reform.
Senator Kevin Blackwell, the author of medical cannabis reform, presented the amendment as an opportunity to give the House a second chance.
If the House fails to embark on the last-ditch measure, the aspect of whether Mississippi will legalize medical marijuana will be decided by the Supreme Court. This measure is slated for hearing on and challenges the voter-approved Initiative 65 cannabis measure.
After several parliamentary issues to the 2765 Senate Bill, it came to a stop on Wednesday. Trey Lamar, chairman of Ways and Means, motioned to ‘lay the reform on the table’. A lot of legislators applauded when Trey made that motion. The reform had caused hours of bitter debate within the Senate and during its House approval. It also faced bipartisan opposition.
Before the proposal was halted, Representative Joel Bomgar who is an ardent proponent and financial supporter of Initiative 65, accused Trey of running a ruse while adding that the reform was focused on messing everyone who supported Initiative 65. Last week, Bomgar , said in a committee that he successfully killed the Senate reform using an amendment to substitute the text that residents approved with Initiativ e65.
