A Democratic state senator is proposing to fully legalize marijuana in Georgia, providing Colorado-style access at licensed retail shops while also allowing its use through medical providers for treatment of conditions including cancer, glaucoma and HIV/AIDS.
State Sen. Curt Thompson, D-Norcross, filed the proposals Monday for consideration by the state Legislature next year. The legislative session starts Jan. 12.
Thompson’s Senate Bill 7 would allow doctors to prescribe up to 2 ounces of marijuana for treatment of specific debilitating medical conditions, and its use would be strictly regulated by the state.
Additionally, Senate Resolution 6 is a proposed amendment to the state constitution. Requiring two-thirds passage by legislators as well as voter approval, it would legalize, regulate and tax the sale of retail marijuana. Tax revenue from the sale of marijuana would be constitutionally earmarked for education and transportation infrastructure.
Taken as a pair, Thompson’s legislation is the second marijuana proposal filed this month — albeit it is highly unlikely to get anywhere given opposition to widespread legalization from Gov. Nathan Deal and the state’s Republican majorities in both legislative chambers.
The first proposal, from Republican state Rep. Allen Peake of Macon, has a better shot. House Bill 1 would legalize only a form of marijuana known as cannabis oil for medicinal use. The oil is used to treat certain seizure disorders in both children and adults, afflictions that can cause hundreds of seizures a day and often lead to death.
The oil is harvested from the marijuana plant but does not create the high that recreational users of marijuana seek. Deal already has backed recent state efforts to begin clinical trials using cannabis oil, giving Peake’s bill the likely momentum it needs.
Both Thompson and Peake were part of a state committee created this year to study cannabis’ effects. Lawmakers plan one more committee session under the Gold Dome on Dec. 3.
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