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Medical Marijuana Showdown Looms

Toben Hansen
/
Flickr/Creative Commons

The House and Senate reached agreement today on a medical marijuana bill

This final version would allow patients with a doctor’s prescription to possess up to six ounces of marijuana. Medicinal use would only be granted to people with debilitating conditions or terminal diseases.

Senator James Forsythe, a Republican from Strafford, believes the bill is designed to ensure public safety.

"We have plant size limits, we have a database, we have disclosed cultivation locations, and also an additional class B felony for selling," says Forsythe.

Supporters say those protections will boost the measure’s popularity among lawmakers.

But Governor Lynch has promised a veto, citing concern over proliferation.

To override a veto, it takes a two-thirds majority in both chambers. The House is likely to hit that mark.

Getting the needed support in the Senate will be more of a challenge, where in 2009, an override on this issue fell two votes short.

Todd started as a news correspondent with NHPR in 2009. He spent nearly a decade in the non-profit world, working with international development agencies and anti-poverty groups. He holds a master’s degree in public administration from Columbia University.
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