AUGUSTA (AP) — As activists ramp up efforts to legalize recreational marijuana use, Maine legislators are trying to get out in front of the issue.

Lawmakers will consider at least four pot-related bills in the new year, including one that will help law enforcement determine if someone is too stoned to drive.

Democratic state Rep. Diane Russell, of Portland, says she will introduce a bill to tax and regulate the use of recreational marijuana.

Two groups — the Marijuana Policy Project and Legalize Maine — plan to launch petition drives to collect signatures for 2016 referendums to legalize recreational pot use.

The Portland Press Herald (http://bit.ly/170amYF ) reported that Russell also will sponsor a bill to remove the list of qualifying conditions for which patients can be approved to use medical marijuana.


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