Group behind failed effort to legalize recreational weed in Florida is trying again
Just months after its amendment was defeated in the 2024 election, the group pushing recreational marijuana in Florida is trying again to get the issue in front of voters.
Smart & Safe Florida is pursuing a constitutional amendment to allow for adult recreational marijuana use for 2026, according to Florida’s amendment database.
The group’s new language appears aimed at addressing many of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ arguments against the 2024 proposal.
The state approved the group to begin the petition-seeking process on Tuesday.
In November, Smart & Safe Florida’s proposed amendment got about 56% of the vote, short of Florida’s 60% threshold for adoption.
DeSantis used state power to rail against the amendment, holding news conferences where he would bring up concerns about pot stench in public and worries about the outsized power Florida marijuana companies would have.
The new proposal is similar to what it proposed in 2024. But it specifically says that smoking or vaping marijuana in public is prohibited. And it limits how much marijuana someone can possess legally to two ounces. The 2024 amendment proposed allowing up to three ounces.
It also notes that nothing stops a private property owner from prohibiting someone from smoking recreational marijuana on their property, and notes that the Legislature can choose to allow for homegrown marijuana.
The amendment that failed in November would have allowed Florida’s existing medical marijuana treatment centers to sell recreational marijuana.
The new proposal still allows those medical centers to sell recreational pot but also would require the Legislature to pass a law creating a path for licensing other “Marijuana Entities” that could acquire, cultivate, process or sell recreational marijuana.
In the lead-up to the 2024 election, Smart & Safe Florida spent more than $150 million trying to get the amendment on the ballot and campaigning for votes.
To qualify for the 2026 ballot, the group will need to again collect nearly 900,000 validated petitions and will likely need to again withstand Florida Supreme Court review.
But Florida’s petition process is up in the air right now. DeSantis has said he would like to see the process overhauled, citing concerns about fraud and other issues.
He asked lawmakers to tackle the issue during an upcoming special legislative session, but Florida’s legislative leaders shot the idea down, saying it would be better suited for Florida’s regular session in March.
Currently, only medical marijuana is legal in Florida, which was passed through a constitutional amendment in 2016.
DeSantis’ opposition to recreational marijuana differs from President-elect Donald Trump, a Florida voter who endorsed the 2024 pot amendment.