Arizona Organizations Fight To Pass Prop 203

On Monday November 15, almost 2 weeks after Arizona’s polls closed, constituents voted yes on the hotly debated medical-marijuana law. Although, Arizona is the fifteenth law to pass a law legalizing medical-marijuana use, it's the first state to pass such a law since 1996. Prop 203 (as it was presented on the November ballot) was intensely advocated for by the Medical Marijuana Project , an advocacy group which seeks to “Increase public support for non-punitive, non-coercive marijuana policies, identify and activate supporters of non-punitive, non-coercive marijuana policies, change state laws to reduce or eliminate penalties for the medical and non-medical use of marijuana”. Another group, which worked actively to get Proposition 203 passed, is the Arizona Medical Marijuana Policy Project (AMMPP) a grassroots organization based in the state. Last April the group submitted more than 250,000 signatures to the State’s office and in June the Arizona Secretary agreed to put it on the November ballot after finding all inscriptions valid.

But the proposition was not without many opponents, including “Keep AZ Drug-Free” . As to be expected Drug-Free America, S.T.A.N.D. (Students Taking Drugs Not Drugs) and the National Drug-Free Workplace Alliance were on this list as well. However, many other groups including the Arizona Chamber of Commerce, Arizona Association of Counties and Industry, and Arizona Manufacturers Council also came out against the measure. The < href =" http://www.azchamber.com/news/view_article.cfm?ID="> Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry which is committed to advancing economic growth and the state’s competitive position in the global market “cited concerns over workplace, and employer burdens” due to the fact that the law makes it illegal for an employer to discipline an employee enrolled in the states program regardless of the amount that is in his or her system. “The potential safety impacts on marijuana users’ co-workers, the customers they interact with or the general public cannot be overlooked”.

The debate over Prop 203, which ensued for months, demonstrated the immense and ever-growing prowess and influence of interest groups on American policy. According to CBS News Health Blog, Carolyn Short , chairwoman of Keep AZ Drug Free, believes that the law will “increase crime around dispensary locations, lead to more people driving and eventually lead to legalized pot for everyone”. But the list of groups in opposition to Prop 203 represent a wide array of interests which all differ from each other. In a system that is at least partially pluralist in nature, groups like Drug-Free America and the Arizona Manufacturers Council, which represent different interests, have coalesced towards the same position to oppose a policy which contradict the respective principles upon which they each stand. Keep AZ Drug Free has listed all of these groups on their webpage in a way that suggests a strong alliance of these associations on the Prop 203 issue.