Third time the charm on medical marijuana in South Dakota?

Proponents of legalized medical marijuana will take another run at getting the measure on South Dakota’s ballot.

The state attorney general issued an explanation for the proposed initiated measure, which is necessary before petitions can be circulated by sponsors.

The measure is entitled “An initiated measure to legalize marijuana for medical use.”

According to the AG statement, this measure would allow qualifying patients, even minors, to use, deliver and manufacture marijuana and marijuana-based products for medical purposes. This includes treating or alleviating debilitating medical conditions certified by the patients’ practitioners.

If the sponsors obtain enough signatures of qualified voters by this November, the measure will go on the November 2020 ballot.

Last year, a similar measure didn’t even make it to the ballot, being rejected because petitioners only had about 62 percent of the valid number of voter signatures required to put it on the ballot. They also failed to gather enough signatures in 2016.

Twice, South Dakota voters failed to approve a medical marijuana measure. In In 2006, 52 percent of voters defeated the medical marijuana initiative; and in 2010 that disapproval percentage surged to 63 percent.