Local officials in Houston, Texas are set to decide this week to place a voter-initiated measure to make misdemeanor marijuana possession the “lowest possible enforcement priority” for local police on the November ballot.
Activists with Ground Game Texas have submitted nearly 40,000 signatures from registered voters in support of the Houston Freedom Act, which would also ban no-knock warrants in the city.
The City Council is expected to receive public testimony on the proposed charter amendment on Tuesday and then vote on Wednesday to place it on the ballot.
The cannabis initiative says that its purpose is to “carefully allocating scarce city resources, reducing the risk of discriminatory enforcement practices, and focusing city resources on the highest priority public safety concerns.”
“The City shall update its annual budget, police department manual, and relevant policies and procedures to ensure that public safety resources are not wasted on misdemeanor marijuana enforcement, and are instead targeted at other programs that best promote the health, safety, and general welfare of the people of Houston,” it says.
The measure says the city should support diversion options such as referrals to treatment or participation in community service programs as an alternative to arrest for people accused
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