By Matt Ferner

Backers of a Denver ballot initiative that would allow adults to consume marijuana in some bars and other venues say they have collected more than 10,000 signatures in support of the measure — many more than needed — and they submitted the petition to the city clerk on Monday.

The city clerk now has 25 days to certify it. If the clerk finds 4,726 valid signatures, the measure will appear on the ballot this November. 

The proposal would permit the smoking and vaporizing of marijuana in non-residential spaces that can’t be publicly viewed. (Currently, recreational cannabis consumption is restricted to private homes and some hotels that allow it.) Smoking pot would likely be confined to enclosed outdoor areas, since Colorado state law limits indoor smoking.

“While petitioning, we found that most voters agree adults should be able to consume marijuana socially in establishments that choose to allow it,” Mason Tvert, proponent of the measure and communications director for the Marijuana Policy Project, said in a statement. “By allowing adults to consume marijuana in private businesses, we can reduce the likelihood that they’ll consume it publicly in parks or on the street.”

A survey conducted by Democratic-leaning Public Policy Polling in July supports Tvert’s observation. PPP found that 56 percent of likely 2015 Denver voters would favor allowing businesses to permit cannabis consumption on the premises. Only 40 percent said they were opposed. 

Colorado became the first state — and the first government in the world — to legalize and regulate recreational marijuana for adults in 2012, with the first retail shops opening in 2014. State law continues to ban recreational marijuana consumption “openly and publicly,” but the law doesn’t specifically block pot use in private clubs for those 21 and older. The proposed ballot initiative would help to define private clubs in Denver.

If voters approved the measure, Denver …read more

Source:: Weed Feed