In spite of the reality that the legislature has adjourned until next January, a senate committee held a hearing yesterday on a Republican-authored bill to legalize medical marijuana in Wisconsin. The hearing gave supporters their highest profile opportunity to make the case for loosening Wisconsin’s marijuana laws. Thirty-seven states have legalized medical marijuana and eighteen have fully legalized it, including Illinois and Michigan. Wisconsin’s other two neighbors, Iowa and Minnesota, allow medical marijuana.

We think its people need to know that elected officials from both parties are pushing for some type of legalization, or at a minimum decriminalization, of marijuana. Lots of data is beginning to come in from the states that have already gone down this road. We are taking a hard look at the information since it appears next session the legislature will likely deal more actively with this issue.