TWIN FALLS, Idaho — Idaho voters will decide in November whether to amend the state constitution, giving the Idaho Legislature exclusive authority over marijuana and narcotics legalization — and removing citizens' ability to put such measures on the ballot through the initiative process.
House Joint Resolution 4, if passed, would grant the Idaho Legislature sole power to legalize marijuana, narcotics, or other psychoactive substances, preventing citizen-led ballot initiatives from doing so.
Clint Hostetler, one of 32 co-sponsors of HJR4 in the Idaho House of Representatives, lived in California as marijuana became legalized there. He argues that legalization led to negative changes in communities where he lived.
"No one wants to see us turn into Portland or Seattle, San Francisco, Denver, you take your pick at the failed blue dystopian city," Hostetler said.
"The smell of weed every single place you went, wherever, and you saw zombies, and it began to feel like you were being pushed and in a real unsafe unhealthy environment," Hostetler said.
Hostetler says HJR4 is a tool to protect Idaho from citizen initiatives that would legalize marijuana or other Schedule 1 drugs.
"This just is asking the citizens. Hey will you guys give us a tool to protect the state from citizens initiative that would legalize marijuana or any schedule one drug," Hostetler said.
As it stands now, Idaho voters could petition to have legalization on a future statewide ballot — a process that took place this year but failed to gather enough signatures.
I asked Hostetler about concerns that HJR4 takes a right away from Idaho voters.
"I think it's rather ironic because we are asking the voters, you know? They get to make the ultimate decision if they trust the legislature," Hostetler said. "So we are asking the people, we're not stripping the initiative process away in any other aspect."
Not all Republicans agree. At their fall convention, the Idaho Federation of Republican Women held a debate on whether to pass a resolution in support of HJR4.
Alexandra Caval, president of Southern Idaho Republican Women, debated against the resolution.
"We just really don't need to give up constitutional rights in order to protect ourselves from marijuana and its effects," Caval said.
Caval says the voting demographics in states that have legalized marijuana differ from Idaho, where a majority of registered voters are Republican.
"Say you get enough signatures to put it on the ballot — statistically speaking something like that is going to have a difficult time passing in Idaho, regardless of how much money people spend to get that initiative on the ballot in the first place," Caval said.
"If any marijuana initiative passes and the legislature has the ability to repeal or amend it. Why do you need to give up the right to the constitutional right to pass initiative on that topic?" Caval said.
Hostetler says the measure is a necessary tool.
"Things creep in with deceptive marketing, and emotional narratives and people are easily swayed, so we really have to be careful and I believe this is a good tool," Hostetler said.
Caval is unconvinced.
"I don't think we should give up that liberty for safety. I think we're already safe," Caval said.
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