Lawmakers Drawn To Marijuana Reform

Supporters of a broad bill that would ease marijuana laws wending its way through the Kansas Legislature claim it’s a narrow enough set of reforms that conservative Republicans can vote for it.

They also say it demonstrates a shift in the long-running discussion.

Kansas House passed the bill by a wide margin Thursday, making it the state’s most serious push to liberalize its marijuana policies in decades.

The bill would decrease penalties for marijuana possession, launch a study of industrial hemp and legalize the limited production and sale of hemp oil for seizure treatments.

Democratic Rep. Gail Finney from Wichita, who has long supported comprehensive marijuana legislation, said the vote shows that efforts to “educate” the Legislature have “paid off.”

The bill now goes to the Senate for consideration.