NEW: 57% of RI Voters Support Marijuana Legalization, According to Poll

NEW: 57% of RI Voters Support Marijuana Legalization, According to Poll

A record-high 57% of Rhode Island voters support changing the state law to regulate and tax marijuana like alcohol, according to a survey conducted this month by Public Policy Polling. Only 35% were opposed to the change. Click here for the full results. 

Regulate Rhode Island will hold a press conference today at 1 P.M. in the rotunda of the Rhode Island State House to discuss the poll's findings, including local results from town-wide polls. 

“The Marijuana Regulation, Control, and Taxation Act creates a responsible alternative that proactively controls for public health concerns while allowing adults 21 and older the freedom to legally use marijuana if they choose. Taking the marijuana market above board will create taxpaying jobs and allow the state to tax the distribution and sale of marijuana," said Regulate Rhode Island Director Jared Moffat. 

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The "Marijuana Regulation, Control, and Taxation Act" would allow adults 21 and older to possess of up to one ounce of marijuana and grow one mature marijuana plant in an enclosed, locked space. The act would also create a tightly regulated system of licensed marijuana retail stores, cultivation facilities, and testing facilities and direct the Department of Business Regulation to create rules that regulate security, labeling, and health and safety. 

Regulate Rhode Island is a coalition of citizens and organizations committed to ending the failed policy of marijuana prohibition and replacing it with a system in which marijuana is regulated and taxed similarly to alcohol.