Pubdate: Thu, 05 May 2016
Source: San Diego Union Tribune (CA)
Copyright: 2016 Union-Tribune Publishing Co.
Contact:  http://www.utsandiego.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/386
Note: Seldom prints LTEs from outside it's circulation area.

600K SIGN CALIFORNIA MARIJUANA INITIATIVE

SAN FRANCISCO - Backers of a marijuana legalization initiative said 
Wednesday they have collected enough signatures for the measure to 
qualify for the November ballot in California.

The coalition that includes former Facebook president Sean Parker and 
is backed by Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom and marijuana advocacy groups said 
it has collected 600,000 signatures from registered voters - far more 
than the 365,000 needed - ahead of the July 5 deadline.

Stressing what promises to be a dominant message of their campaign, 
Newsom and other supporters said the initiative will make it harder 
for people under 21 to obtain pot.

"You do not need to be pro-marijuana to be pro-legalization," Newson 
said. "We are not promoting something that is not already ubiquitous 
in the state of California."

The Adult Use of Marijuana Act was one of more than a dozen 
recreational marijuana measures that initially competed for the 
November ballot. The groups with the most political capital and money 
eventually lined up behind the Parker-spearheaded initiative after a 
behind-the-scenes skirmish over issues such as whether growers would 
be allowed to sell directly to retail outlets and how medical 
marijuana would be taxed.

U-T NEWS SERVICES
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