State Rep. Kelly Cassidy (D-14) will introduce new legislation that would replace criminal penalties with a civil fine for possession of a personal amount of marijuana. Cassidy will announce the bill at an 11 a.m. press conference at the James R. Thompson Center on Dec. 10.
According to a Dec. 9 statement, the new proposal will include provisions Gov. Bruce Rauner and a majority of the members of the General Assembly agreed to earlier this year. It will largely mirror legislation previously introduced by Cassidy that was approved in the Senate (37-19) on May 21 and in the House (62-53) on April 23, as well the amendments proposed by the governor when he vetoed the bill and returned it to the legislature on August 14.
Rauner’s changes included lowering the amount allowed from 15 to 10 grams, and raised proposed fines from $55-125 to $100-200, according to reports.
Cassidy will be joined by Rev. Alexander Sharp of Clergy for a New Drug Policy and other faith community members who believe current policy is harmful to Illinoisans.