KTIV NewsChannel 4 Sioux City IA: News, Weather and SportsBuena Vista County, IA board rejects calls to legalize pot

Buena Vista County, IA board rejects calls to legalize pot

STORM LAKE, Iowa (KTIV) - U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley, of Iowa, may face a primary challenge from a northwest Iowa man, who says his platform would be to legalize marijuana.

Paul Peterson went before the Buena Vista County Board of Supervisors, Tuesday, to plead that they "decriminalize" small amounts of marijuana possession.

He says if communities give a simple 50-dollar ticket for the possession of small amounts of marijuana, then he claims more local medical professionals would be open to researching the medical advantages of the drug.

But, Peterson says he believes the movement towards legalizing marijuana can't just start on a federal level. Paul Peterson, Storm Lake, Iowa, said, "It's got to be a local grassroots effort. And, that's why I believe that prosecutorial discretion policies on the local level will generate further positive publicity or allow the state of Iowa to feel that it's safe to come out of the closet on this one,"

But, after Tuesday's meeting, supervisors say they're done discussing it, because they say there are bigger issues-- like the budget-- to discuss. Ken Hach, Buena Vista County Supervisor, said, "There is a law in the books in Iowa and we're not here to change that law. If the medical profession legalizes it and makes a prescription available - that's a whole other thing,"

The Iowa Pharmacy Board is getting input from around the state -- taking into account testimony from doctors, patients and input from states currently allowing marijuana for medical use.

The board will take it's findings to state lawmakers - who will make a decision. The next public hearing will take place November 4th in Council Bluffs.