Kansas lawmakers plan to introduce a bill to legalize medicinal cannabis

State legislators in Kansas met last week to discuss legalizing medical marijuana, with plans to introduce a bill when the legislature reconvenes next year. The attempt to legalize cannabis for medicinal purposes follows an unsuccessful attempt last year when a bill passed the Kansas House of Representatives but failed to gain approval from the State Senate.

Last week, at a meeting of the 2022 Special Committee on Medical Marijuana, the panel’s chair, Republican Sen. Rob Olson, said he plans to introduce a bill legalizing medical marijuana at the start of the January legislature.

“I think what I’m going to do — and any member is more than welcome — is take that information and create the bill,” Olson said at the Dec. 9 committee meeting. “And I’m going to work on a bill with a few members, and then if someone wants to enter the Senate, they can more than sign that bill and bring it up at the beginning of the session.

Olson also encouraged his compatriots to introduce similar legislation, which lawmakers can discuss when they return to the state capital next year. The Kansas State Legislature is currently adjourned and will reconvene on January 9, 2023.

“I think that’s probably the best way forward,” Olson said.

Community members give their opinions on medicinal pot

Members of the community attended the committee meeting, including a group of people who opposed the legalization of medical marijuana and expressed their opinions by wearing stickers that read, “Kansas Says ‘No’.” Individuals also had the opportunity to speak either for or against the legalization of medical marijuana, including Wichita State University senior Laura Cunningham. The student, who attended the committee meeting as part of a school assignment, told members of the select committee on legislation that she supports legalizing the medical use of cannabis.

“I feel like a lot of people who smoke marijuana are very productive members of society and actually function better as a result. I think a lot of people have found that balance that’s appropriate for them as individuals, and that’s what really counts,” Cunningham said. “I don’t think legalizing marijuana will necessarily result in this huge influx of people who don’t have the motivation to participate in society.”

During the meeting, committee members received summaries of issues relevant to the legalization of medical marijuana, including product labeling and packaging, restrictions on medical cannabis possession, taxation, and granting inmates access to medical cannabis. Mike Heim, associate in the Office of Auditor of Statutes, provided an overview of the information during a presentation to the Legislative Committee.

“You’ve had a visit from eight state agencies, you’ve had nine or 10 research memos from the legal research department, you’ve had over 60 conference attendees testifying before this committee in two days, and you’ve reviewed a couple of bills that were alive at the last session were, and so on,” said Heim. “In other words, you have been inundated with information.”

Kansas Medical marijuana bills failed last year

Last year, the Kansas House of Representatives passed a bill legalizing medical marijuana, Senate Bill 158, but the measure was defeated in a Senate committee just weeks later. Another bill legalizing the medicinal use of cannabis, Senate Bill 560, also failed to gain approval from a Senate committee to advance to a vote. Democratic Senator Cindy Holscher said she hopes legislation legalizing medical marijuana will pass the Senate this time, although she reminded her peers of the failure of Senate leaders to support the legislation.

“The whole problem is last year, we had a very strong bill that passed the House of Representatives and Senate President Ty Masterson wouldn’t allow it to go ahead,” Holscher said. “So I know there are different parties that have reached out to him to remind him how important this issue is to many different people. So time will tell.”