A local proposal to allow for cannabis dispensaries in the city of Howell will remain on the ballot. That’s under a new Michigan Court of Appeals decision that rejected attempts from the Howell city clerk to withdraw her consent for the question to go before voters.
The ballot measure proposes changing the city’s charter to “establish an application process, selection criteria, licenses, fees, and regulations for two adult-use retail cannabis establishments in the City.”
The Howell city clerk originally gave her approval for county election officials to place the proposal on the ballot. But questions arose over whether the charter amendment would go beyond what the Michigan Regulation and Taxation of Marihuana Act — the law that provided for recreational-use cannabis — allows, as far as overriding local ordinances.
After a separate Court of Appeals ruling found a similar ballot measure in Farmington didn’t belong on the ballot since it went beyond a narrow scope of ballot initiatives allowed under the state law, the Howell city clerk tried to backtrack.
That led the group behind the ballot question, the Open Stores in Howell Committee, to sue. The group previously won at the trial court level.
In the appellate court decision, a three-judge panel noted the importance of deadlines to ballot certification.
“The crux of defendants’ argument is that the City Clerk has a continuing duty to approve or reject a petition even beyond the deadline for certification to the County Clerk. Again, defendants have provided no authority for that position. In contrast, the importance of adhering to election deadlines cannot be minimized. This Court, for example, is tasked with giving election cases priority on our calendar. ... Also, an extension of a local clerk’s duty would have the potential to wreak havoc on a county’s obligation to meet the printing and mailing deadlines,” the opinion read.
The court’s opinion, however, left the door open for future lawsuits over the measure’s legality should it pass.
Livingston County Clerk Elizabeth Hundley, who was also named in the case as a defendant, said this isn’t the first time she’s seen local clerks wrestle with how to handle marijuana-related proposals.
“I just think there needs to be some clarification so that everyone knows — meaning everyone, including the local clerks and their legal counsel — know what can be ... in the language of these petitions and what is not,” Hundley said.
As far as her office is concerned, Hundley said her main priority is making sure ballots are ready for the November 5 election. Absentee ballots start getting mailed this week to people who have requested them.
