Earlier this week, South Dakotans for Better Marijuana Laws and New Approach South Dakota held a well-attended Zoom media availability conference that lasted for more than an hour. Participants in the call included Brendan Johnson, former U.S. Attorney for South Dakota; Chuck Parkinson, former senior Ronald Reagan and U.S. Senator Jim Abdnor staffer; Melissa Mentele, campaign manager for Initiated Measure 26; and Drey Samuelson, political director of South Dakotans for Better Marijuana Laws, which…

New Approach South Dakota submitted nearly 15,000 signatures to the Secretary of State with hopes of adding a medical marijuana measure to the 2018 ballot. South Dakota Secretary of State Shantel Krebs said the review of the submitted measure would likely be finished within four months. Her office conducts a random sampling of the signatures to determine validity, with at least 5% of the collected signatures being reviewed. The medical marijuana measure that was submitted for signature validation…

In the final weeks of signature collection, New Approach South Dakota is pushing forward to reach their goal. Two petitions are being circulated — one petition seeks to legalize marijuana for medical uses and the other to legalize certain amounts of marijuana for adult use and to regulate and tax marijuana establishments. These ballot measures are of critical importance since the South Dakota Legislature has only taken a symbolic step toward patient access. A bill passed during the last session would…

New Approach South Dakota has 90 days to collect the remaining signatures needed to place marijuana initiative measures on the 2018 ballot. Two petitions are being circulated — one seeks to legalize marijuana for medical uses and the other to legalize certain amounts of marijuana for adult use and to regulate and tax marijuana businesses. Signatures are tied to the number of votes cast in the state's most recent gubernatorial election, so each petition needs at least 13,871 signatures by November…

New Approach South Dakota (NASD) is collecting signatures for a proposal to make medical marijuana legal! This ballot initiative will appear on the 2016 ballot if supporters can collect enough signatures by November 9. That’s only a week away! To help get the measure past the finish line, contact NASD’s Melissa Mentele at [email protected]. If the proposal appears on the 2016 ballot and is approved by the voters, it would: -- Legalize the medical use of marijuana for patients with a medical practitioner’s…