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PHOENIX (AP) – Legal sales of recreational marijuana in Arizona began on Friday, a once-unthinkable step in the former Conservative stronghold that joins 14 other states that have largely legalized pot.
The state’s health services department said on Friday that it had approved 86 licenses in nine of the state’s 15 counties under the provisions of the marijuana legalization measure passed by voters in November. Most of the licenses have gone to existing medical marijuana dispensaries that can start selling pot immediately.
“This is an exciting step for those who want to participate in this program,” said Dr. Cara Christ, Arizona state health director on Friday.
Under the terms of Proposition 207, people 21 and over can grow their own plants and legally own up to one ounce (28 grams) of marijuana or a smaller amount of “concentrates” like hash. Possession of 1 ounce to 2.5 ounces (70 grams) is a small offense punishable by a fine of up to $ 300.
The road to decriminalization in Sun Belt State has been a long one. Approval of the legalization measure came four years after Arizona voters narrowly rejected a similar proposal, despite medical marijuana being legal in the state since 2010.
The initiative met with strong opposition from Republican Gov. Doug Ducey and GOP leaders in the state legislature, but 60 percent of state voters in the November election did so. approved.
The marijuana vote reflected the broader trends at play in the landmark election that saw Democrat Joe Biden overthrow the longtime Republican state where political giants include five-term Tory Senator Barry Goldwater and the late Senator John McCain.
Changing demographics, including a rapidly growing Latin American population and a flood of new residents, have made the state more Democrat-friendly.
The recreational pot measure was backed by advocates for the legal marijuana industry and advocates for criminal justice reform who argued that the state’s tough marijuana laws were out of step. with the nation. Arizona was the only state in the country to still allow a felony charge for the initial possession of small amounts of marijuana, although most of the cases were prosecuted as lower level misdemeanors.
The vast majority of licenses issued on Friday were in Maricopa County, the largest county in the state which is home to Phoenix and its suburbs. Other counties with dispensaries now licensed to sell recreational pot are Cochise, Coconino, Gila, Pima, Pinal, Yavapai and Yuma counties.
Voters in New Jersey, South Dakota and Montana also approved the legalization of possession of recreational marijuana last November.
Arizona prosecutors have dropped thousands of cases of marijuana possession after the measure was approved. Possession in the state technically became legal when election results were certified on November 30, but there was no licensed way to purchase it without a medical marijuana card.
In November, voters dealt another blow to Republicans who controlled state levers of power when they approved a new high-income tax to boost education funding, a move that came after years of GOP tax cuts and underfunding of public schools.
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