Tennessee Lawmakers Push for Nonbinding Cannabis Questions on 2024 Ballot

Tennessee is one of only nine U.S. states that has not legalized cannabis for medical or adult use, but lawmakers in the state want voters to weigh in on whether it’s time for policy changes.

Rep. Jesse Chism, D-Memphis, filed House Bill 2657 Jan. 31 to add three nonbinding questions related to cannabis legalization to Tennessee’s November ballot.

If passed, the bill would place the following yes/no questions before voters this fall:

• Should the state of Tennessee legalize medical marijuana?
• Should the state of Tennessee decriminalize possession of less than 1 ounce of marijuana?
• Should the state of Tennessee legalize and regulate commercial sales of recreational use of marijuana?
  

The questions represent a nonbinding advisory referendum to assess how voters feel about cannabis laws in the state.

Chism filed identical legislation last year, according to a WKRN report, but the bill stalled in a House subcommittee.

If this year’s bill clears the General Assembly and is signed into law by Republican Gov. Bill Lee, it would direct the secretary of state to compile the results of the ballot questions and publish them online, as well as send the results to each lawmaker in the General Assembly, WKRN reported.

Last year, opponents of the legislation argued that cannabis policy should be decided at the federal level, according to the news outlet, and some worried about the length of Tennessee’s ballot should the three cannabis-related questions be included.

Sen. Raumesh Akbari, D-Memphis, is sponsoring identical legislation, Senate Bill 2726, in the upper chamber this year.

H.B. 2657 and S.B.2726 are both awaiting consideration in committee.

Sen. Janice Bowling, R-Tullahoma, has spearheaded legalization efforts in the General Assembly in recent years to no avail.

Last year, Sen. Heidi Campbell, D-Nashville, and Rep. Bob Freeman, D-Nashville, teamed up to file an adult-use legalization bill, but this effort also stalled in the Republican-controlled General Assembly.