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Rocky Anderson: Smoking its own dope: Utah Legislature’s disregard for the people’s initiative leads to legally invalid pot plan

“All political power is inherent in the people.” That’s a “fundamental principle” the Utah Constitution recognizes as being “essential to the security of individual rights and the perpetuity of free government.” Under our Constitution, the people vested legislative power in the Utah Legislature, but retained the power and the right to pass their own laws through the initiative process.

By passing Proposition 2, the people of the state voted, among other things, to have a free-market system of distributing medical cannabis. As soon as possible, the Legislature, in a special session called by the governor, eviscerated Proposition 2 because legislators, urged on by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, believed they had the right to disregard the will of the majority of the people.