A Florida lawmaker has introduced a new bill to legalize recreational marijuana that also aims to break up what he calls “monopolies” in the state’s current medical cannabis program by revising the business licensing structure.
The legislation, filed by Sen. Carlos Guillermo Smith (D), comes as the state Supreme Court reviews the constitutionality of proposed adult-use legalization initiative that an industry-funded campaign is seeking to place on the November ballot.
Under the new bill, adults over 21 years of age could legally possess up to four ounces of smokable marijuana or cannabis products containing up to 2,000 milligrams of THC. Medical cannabis patients would be allowed to grow up to six flowering plants at home for personal use.
Medical marijuana businesses that apply for adult-use licenses could begin selling cannabis for recreational purposes beginning next January.
“We can’t call ourselves the ‘Free State of Florida’ while continuing to criminalize cannabis use by grown adults,” Smith told Marijuana Moment on Thursday, adding that a majority of voters approved a legalization initiative at the ballot in 2024 that wasn’t enacted after “falling just short of the state’s arbitrary 60 percent threshold.”
“The message from voters was unmistakable: they want change,” he said.
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