Another new poll shows that a majority of Utah voters support legalizing marijuana. The state’s Republican leaders in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, however, continue to oppose legalization.
The Deseret News and Hinckley Institute of Politics released a survey on Sunday that shows that voters want a new policy. The poll showed that 53 percent of those surveyed agreed with the idea that adult use cannabis should be legalized in the state, and that 30 percent of them “strongly support” the reform.
Also, it shows a 77-percent majority of voters in support of the current medical marijuana laws.
In spite of the findings of the poll—which involved interviews with 805 registered Utah voters from May 16-21, with a +/-3.5 percentage point margin of error—GOP leadership in the legislature remains obstinate.
The Desert News quoted Senate President Stuart Adams, (R), as saying that Utah already had a “responsible, balanced and effective” program to ensure that people with serious illness or chronic pain have access. The program also maintains strong safeguards against misuse.
“States which have extended legalization beyond the medical use of marijuana have experienced serious social effects, such as increased homelessness and criminality,” said he. “I am against further expansion, because we should focus on what is truly beneficial to our state and all Utahns.
House Speaker Mike Schultz echoed the point. “The state’s current approach assures Utahns that they have access to assistance while maintaining important safeguards of public health and security.”
“I remain firmly opposed to legalizing recreational marijuana,” he said, adding that it’s “encouraging to see that a strong majority of Utahns–77 percent–agree that our focus should remain on providing benefit to those who need it most.”
This survey’s findings are similar to a March poll conducted by Noble Predictive Insights. The nonprofit Keep Utah Medical commissioned the poll, and found that 52 per cent of Utah registered voters support an initiative on the ballot for ending cannabis prohibition.
Schultz (the House Speaker) responded to the survey by saying he “has a huge problem” with Utah being turned into a recreational-oriented state and that “it is not going to be happening.”
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Utah officials also confirmed last month that more than 100 000 patients have now been registered in the medical marijuana program.
State lawmakers have taken steps to build upon the state’s medical marijuana law in recent years.
Utah, a state known for being conservative in its politics, passed a separate law last year allowing hospitals to use MDMA and psilocybin as an alternative option for treatment. The governor let that law take effect without his signature last year.
Meanwhile, a federal judge in Utah recently ordered county law enforcement return psilocybin mushrooms that police seized from a Provo City-based religious group that uses the psychedelic fungi as sacrament.
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