State board to consider cannabis amendment on August 3 July 26, 2022 By Griffin Coop The state Board of Election Commissioners has set Aug. 3 as the date it will consider whether to certify a proposed constitutional amendment to legalize recreational marijuana for the November ballot. The board will meet at 1:30 p.m. in the Old Supreme Court chamber at the state Capitol to consider the Arkansas Adult Use Cannabis Amendment sponsored by Responsible Growth Arkansas, according to Daniel Shults, director of the board. In order to make the ballot, constitutional amendments must have at least 89,151 signatures verified by the secretary of state and must be certified by the Board of Election Commissioners. Responsible Growth Arkansas submitted more than 192,000 unverified signatures on July 8. The Secretary of State has 30 days from submission to verify the signatures, but spokesman Chris Powell said Tuesday via email the office will not provide updates on the count while it is in progress.  Since the passage of Act 376 of 2019, proposed constitutional amendments have had to be certified by the Board of Election Commissioners in order to make the ballot. The board must make its determination based on whether it believes the board the proposed amendment is misleading and whether it achieves the voter’s intended result.
