Question 8 would repeal legal recreational marijuana sales in Massachusetts
(7-minute read)
This series, which examines the nine statewide ballot questions on the November 3, 2026, Massachusetts ballot, continues with Question 8, which asks voters whether to repeal the law that legalized, regulated, and taxed retail marijuana sales while keeping personal possession legal under tighter limits.
What Question 8 would do
Question 8, titled “An Act to Restore a Sensible Marijuana Policy,” is an initiative petition that would repeal Chapter 94G of the Massachusetts General Laws, which legalized and regulated the commercial sale of recreational marijuana, and Chapter 64N, which created the state and local taxes on those sales. It would also repeal the law permitting adults to grow marijuana in their own homes. Massachusetts voters legalized recreational marijuana in 2016 by approving Question 4 with 53.7% in favor; if voters approve Question 8, Massachusetts would become the first state where voters repealed a voter-approved law legalizing marijuana.
In place of the current law, Question 8 would set new possession limits; adults 21 and older could possess up to one ounce of marijuana, including no more than five grams in concentrate form, without any civil or criminal penalty, and could give up to that amount to another adult without payment. Possession of between one and two ounces would become a civil offense carrying a $100 fine and forfeiture of the marijuana. For people under 21, possessing up to two ounces would be a civil infraction carrying the same $100 fine and forfeiture, plus a required drug awareness program, community service, and notification to a parent or guardian.
The measure would leave the medical marijuana program in place and keep the Cannabis Control Commission in existence, but narrow its authority to regulating only medical marijuana. Currently licensed recreational marijuana businesses could apply on an expedited basis to become licensed medical dispensaries and sell off their remaining recreational inventory to medical dispensaries. If approved, the law would take effect January 1, 2028.
The state’s Executive Office of Administration and Finance found that repealing the retail marijuana tax would reduce money flowing to state and local government. Taxing recreational marijuana sales raised about $280M in state revenue and $50M in local revenue in FY25. Money that helps fund local aid for schools and municipal budgets.
A yes vote would prohibit legalization, regulation, and taxation of retail recreational marijuana sales and change marijuana possession penalties as described above. A no vote would make no change to the law.
Massachusetts’ marijuana law since 2016
After voters approved recreational marijuana in 2016, Governor Charlie Baker signed a law in July 2017 that raised the state excise tax on marijuana sales from 3.75% to 10.75%, increased the local option tax from 2% to 3%, and expanded the Cannabis Control Commission from three to five members. Massachusetts was one of 13 states, along with Washington, D.C., to legalize recreational marijuana through a ballot initiative. As of January 2026, 24 states and D.C. had legalized recreational marijuana through ballot initiatives, legislative referrals, or bills signed into law, according to Ballotpedia.
Marijuana policy has come before Massachusetts voters twice before 2016: voters decriminalized possession of an ounce or less in 2008 with 65% in favor, and legalized medical marijuana in 2012 with 63% in favor. Both of those were, like Question 8, indirect initiated state statutes.
A group of business owners sued to keep Question 8 off the ballot, arguing it unconstitutionally combined unrelated subjects by pairing a repeal of recreational sales with changes to medical marijuana’s legal and financial support structure. The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court rejected that challenge on June 12, 2026, with Justice Elizabeth Dewar writing that while some voters might want to restrict recreational marijuana without changing the medical program, the measure did not force voters to cast “a single vote on two or more dissimilar subjects.”
Path to the ballot
The Coalition for a Healthy Massachusetts filed the initiative petition with the Attorney General’s office in August 2025, and the office cleared it for signature collection that September. In December, the campaign announced it had collected more than the required number of signatures. The state Elections Division certified sufficient valid signatures and sent the measure to the Legislature as House Bill 5002.
The Special Joint Committee on Initiative Petitions held a hearing on the proposal on March 23, 2026. On May 4, a majority of the committee voted to recommend the Legislature take no action, citing concerns about a lack of detail on implementation and enforcement, the potential loss of public health and safety safeguards such as product testing and youth-access protections, and the effect on state and local revenue and on licensed businesses. The Legislature did not act by the May 5 deadline, and the campaign gathered a second round of signatures and returned them in July. The Secretary of the Commonwealth’s office certified the signatures and qualified Question 8 for the November ballot.
The case for
The Coalition for a Healthy Massachusetts is leading the campaign to support Question 8, backed by Smart Approaches to Marijuana and Massachusetts Republican State Committee member Kathleen Lynch.
In the official argument filed with the state, supporters write that Question 8 “would keep personal possession of marijuana legal, keep medical marijuana legal, and stop commercial marijuana stores,” pointing to marijuana’s prevalence in fatal crash tests and arguing that commercial sales have driven up healthcare costs, workplace injuries, and psychiatric emergency room visits among teenagers. Dr. Jeffrey Morgan, a retired oncologist who authored the argument, is affiliated with the coalition. Spokesperson Wendy Wakeman has said the black market “hasn’t gone away” despite legalization, and the coalition has cited a state audit finding regulatory noncompliance that allowed contaminated products to reach consumers, according to Ballotpedia.
The case against
The campaign Stop the Repeal, funded by the Committee to Protect Cannabis Regulation, is leading opposition to Question 8. Opponents include U.S. Senators Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren; U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley; Governor Maura Healey; Fitchburg Mayor Samantha Squaillia; former Boston City Councilor Tito Jackson; the SEIU Massachusetts State Council; the Marijuana Policy Project; and the Retailers Association of Massachusetts, according to Ballotpedia.
In the official argument filed with the state, opponents write that Question 8 “would create serious public health and safety problems by repealing the rules and regulations that currently control the production and sale of marijuana in Massachusetts,” arguing it would push sales back into an unregulated illicit market, divert law enforcement resources to marijuana arrests that have historically fallen disproportionately on communities of color, and eliminate thousands of jobs and billions in tax revenue. Representative Pressley has said legal recreational marijuana was designed partly to address the legacy of the war on drugs through social equity programs, and Governor Healey has said she would vote no, calling cannabis “an important industry” she hopes voters will keep in Massachusetts.
Where to find the full guide
The Information for the Voters guide is available online through the Secretary of the Commonwealth's Elections Division. It is offered in English, Spanish, Traditional Chinese, Vietnamese, and Khmer, and an audio version is available. Residents with questions can contact the Elections Division at 617-727-2828.
The series continues next week with Question 9.
