San Marcos nears talk of decriminalizing marijuana offenses

SAN MARCOS, Texas — A petition created to do away with penalties for low-level marijuana offenses in San Marcos, Texas, surpassed the threshold for required signatures. Interim City Clerk Liz Treviño certified the petition on Wednesday, July 27.

This initiative would decriminalize the possession of marijuana up to 4 ounces. It’s scheduled to be on the October and November ballot.

Leading the charge were Ground Game Texas and Mano Amigo, with help from Lost River Film Fest, Texas Cannabis Collective and others. Together, they collected 10,624 signatures, and Treviño’s office verified 4,667 of them.

🚨The news we have all been waiting for!! Stay tuned for more details & information! pic.twitter.com/J6m2uOrKBj

— Mano Amiga SMTX (@ManoAmigaSM) July 27, 2022

According to the city charter, when a petition reaches the specified 4,182 signatures for certification, the council has 30 days to pass the unamended ordinance or hold an election.

Mano Amigo could have had more verified signatures, but a mishap with collecting signatures and registering voters dinged their efforts a bit. The organization got more than 500 Texas State University students’ signatures, but since many of them also registered to vote on the same day, the city clerk’s office didn’t deem those signatures as valid, according to a news release.

“This people-powered campaign is focused on passing a transformative policy that will end tickets and arrests for low-level marijuana arrests,” said Mike Siegel, political director for Ground Game Texas in the press release. “This campaign is also engaging young voters and infrequent voters and helping us identify thousands of local residents who care about public policy but need to update their registration. We are excited to partner with Mano Amiga in this effort.”

Plans to discuss the measure begin Aug. 3.