May 17, 2013 1 min read

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A proposed constitutional amendment to legalize medical marijuana in Ohio has cleared an initial step to get before voters.

Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine certified a summary of the proposal Friday and said the submission contained the 1,000 valid signatures required for the effort to move forward.

A group called the Ohio Rights Group is behind the Ohio Cannabis Rights Amendment, which calls for a commission to regulate the use of medical marijuana and permit Ohioans to grow industrial hemp for paper or clothing.

The group hopes to put it before voters by 2014 and must collect roughly 385,000 valid signatures to get the measure on the statewide ballot.

The Ohio Ballot Board analyzes the amendment next week.