A group of marijuana advocates filed an initiative petition Monday to decriminalize marijuana in Oklahoma City.
Reform OKC will start gathering signatures Friday.
State Senator Constance Johnson (D-Oklahoma City) has been an outspoken supporter of cannabis legalization at the state Capitol. She says Oklahoma City’s petition could pave the way for a larger, statewide effort to legalize the drug.
“The savings that can be achieved by people paying a maximum $500 fine versus taxpayers paying for a $24,000/year prison bed for simple marijuana possession will be game changing," Johnson said in a statement.
The group has 90 days to gather roughly 62-hundred signatures in order to put the measure on the ballot in the next citywide municipal election.
INITIATIVE PETITION NO. 35 To the Honorable Mick Cornett, Mayor, for the City of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma: We, the undersigned legal voters of City of Oklahoma City, respectfully order that the following proposed law shall be submitted to the legal voters of the City of Oklahoma City, for their approval or rejection at the regular or special city election, to be held on the _____ day of _________, 2014, and each for himself says: I have personally signed this petition; I am a legal voter of the district of City of Oklahoma City; my residence or post office are correctly written after my name. The time for filing this petition expires ninety days from _________. The question we herewith submit to our fellow voters is: Shall the following amendment to the Municipal Code be approved? An Amendment to the Municipal Code Of Oklahoma City by Amending Section § 30-269 of the Municipal Code to change punishment for possession of marihuana from a class “b” offense to a class “a” offense, which shall be punishable by a fine not exceeding $500.00, excluding costs and fees. The existing Section § 30-269 reads as follows: § 30-269. Penalties for violation. Any person who violates any of the provision of this division shall be guilty of a Class "b" offense. The proposed amendment would amend Section § 30-269 to read as follows: § 30-269. Penalties for violation. Any person who violates any of the provision of this division shall be guilty of a Class "a" offense.
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