marijuana legalization

A July 2022 poll of registered South Dakota voters shows a majority do not support legalization of recreational marijuana, which will be up for a statewide vote on Initiated Measure 27 in the November 2022 election. Supporters of legalization question the validity of the poll findings, which run counter to other poll results and to the result of the 2020 election in which voters approved a constitutional amendment -- later overturned in the courts -- to legalize recreational marijuana for adult use in South Dakota.

Gov. Kristi Noem called the medical marijuana program in Oklahoma "a mess," but some officials in Oklahoma and South Dakota argue that the program has fulfilled the wishes of voters and has made starting a marijuana-related business easy for local entrepreneurs.

As South Dakota prepares to roll out a framework for legalization of medical marijuana, South Dakota News Watch provides a look at how medical marijuana programs are operating in North Dakota, Minnesota and Montana.

After a slow start during the 2021 legislative session, South Dakota lawmakers and state officials are stepping up the pace of planning and preparation for the legalization of medical and recreational marijuana in South Dakota. Both forms are marijuana are set to become legal on July 1 after voters approved a pair of separate ballot measures.