Print Column: We Need to Legalize Marijuana, Not Merely Decriminalize It
MINOT, N.D. – Last year a ballot measure to legalize marijuana in North Dakota failed at the ballot box.
Despite this outcome, many of our state’s politicians recognize there is a need, and an appetite among voters, for some further loosening of our state’s laws with regard to marijuana.
Enter state Rep. Shannon Roers Jones, a Republican from Fargo who is proposing a bill in this legislative session to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana.
If it passes, those possessing less than an ounce of marijuana (or no more than two plants) would face only a $200 fine.
Currently, the fine is a $1,500 fine and up to 30 days in jail.
