Members of the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin voted in favor of legalizing recreational and medical marijuana – but the results don’t change any ordinances.
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According to the results, 677 tribal members voted in favor of approving recreational marijuana for adults aged 21 years and older and 494 members voted against it.
The tribe said the referendum results are advisory, meaning tribal leadership isn’t bound by them.
The Justice Department announced in 2014 it would let Indian tribes legalize and regulate marijuana, but most tribes have been reluctant to move forward with the new freedom for concern about possible public safety and health consequences. It’s just an advisory process.
It’s something a handful of tribes across the country are considering after the U.S. Department of Justice released a memo back in December.
Assembly Majority Leader Jim Steineke, R-Kaukauna, said in a statement he was disappointed in the tribe’s vote, saying eventual legalization could pose “serious challenges for law enforcement”.
State and local authorities have jurisdiction over the 10 other tribes in Wisconsin and at least three of those are seriously looking at legalizing marijuana or a derivative on their reservations.
About 13 percent of the tribe’s 9,000 members cast ballots. Still, Besaw said, it could be worthwhile to begin growing and selling weed.
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Besaw says he’s not sure how much money marijuana would bring in for the tribe. In Wisconsin, Gregory Haanstad, the new acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District, has only said that marijuana remains illegal under federal law.
