COLUMBUS, Ohio -- A divided Ohio Democratic Party won't take a stance on Issue 3, leaving individual public officials and county parties to decide whether to back the contentious marijuana legalization amendment on the Nov. 3 ballot.

But one county chairman leading the push for his colleagues to endorse Issue 3 stands to profit if the measure passes.

Lorain County Democratic Party Chairman Tony Giardini is an investor in the company that will own one of only 10 marijuana farms allowed to grow and sell the plant under the amendment.

Pot and banking don’t mix, the Ohio Bankers League said Wednesday in opposing a November election proposal to legalize marijuana.

“Our board of directors voted to oppose state Issue 3 because of the conflict it would create between state and federal law,” Mike Adelman, league president and chief executive officer, said in a statement.

The league represents 200 large and small commercial and savings banks and savings and loan associations, with assets up to $3 trillion.

If you follow marijuana politics, then you know that Ohio has a marijuana legalization initiative that will be on the ballot in 2015. The initiative has drawn a lot of controversy because it only allows ten entities to grow recreational marijuana for profit in Ohio. The ten entities that get to grow marijuana for profit are the only ones funding the initiative as far as I know. So who are these ten entities? Below is a list of who will be able to grow marijuana for profit if the initiative passes, via Marijuana Business Daily:

• Licking County site – Dr. Suresh Gupta and Alan Mooney, principal of Mooney Wealth Advisory.

Reactions to the “Responsible Ohio” cannabis-legalization initiative have a lot to tell us about the changing politics of the marijuana question. No much of what they have to tell us is encouraging.

Cannabis policy change in the United States has been driven, until now, by people whose interest in the matter was primarily non-commercial: pot smokers yearning to toke free, culture warriors of the (cultural) left, libertarians, criminal justice reformers concerned about arrest and incarceration, and people who think that it’s bad policy to criminalize the behavior of tens of millions of people unless there’s a stronger reason to do so than the risks of cannabis create.

SPRINGFIELD — 

The legal marijuana industry bears one major likeness to the black market: It’s an all-cash business.

Even in the four states that have legalized marijuana, banks generally have refused to open accounts for store owners, growers and owners of ancillary enterprises. Without a gateway into the banking system, owners of legal-marijuana businesses cannot write checks, access online banking tools or directly deposit paychecks. They must pay employees, suppliers and even the tax man the old-fashioned way – with currency.

Following a September 25th debate on legalizing cannabis in Cincinnati, the majority of those who took part in a straw poll voted for legalization but against Issue 3 - a controversial motion that would grant an exclusive license to 10 legal growers in the state.

Afterward, the 124 attendees cast their votes: 86 voted for legalization, but not Issue 3; 36 supported Issue 3, and 2 voted against both. Admittedly, the same size is pretty small - but it's far from certain that Issue 3 will pass November 3rd in the statewide vote, even if the majority of people favour legalization.

Running a marijuana business is more than a pipe dream, says Justin Breidenbach: It’s about taxes, banking, liability, supply and demand.

Breidenbach, an associate professor of accounting at Ohio Wesleyan University who has been studying the economics of pot for two years, concludes that there’s potential for big money to be made if Ohio legalizes pot on Nov. 3. But, he says, marijuana entrepreneurs might go through a minefield to get there.

Doctors have projected Tom Clint will only live another four months.

A dentist visit in 1994 revealed leukoplakia in the Ashtabula man's mouth, which later progressed into stage 3 oral, nasal and skin cancers. In February, doctors said the only way to save his life was to remove his tongue, but he chose against a life in which he couldn't talk, and hasn't seen an oncologist since.

The 57-year-old upholsterer said he's counting on the natural qualities of marijuana to halt, or even reverse, the spread of cancer through his body. 

"I've decided I've got the rest of my life to live," Clint said. "I've held (cancer) back all these years and I believe it's because I've smoked marijuana.

Columbus mayoral candidates Andrew J. Ginther and Zach Scott have differed on nearly everything: tax abatements, fixing education and body cameras for police.

But they do agree on one thing: Don’t legalize marijuana.

Ginther said he opposes Issue 3, which would legalize marijuana via the Ohio Constitution. Scott said that as a career-long law-enforcement officer, he has “my own personal feelings,” when asked during recent interviews with The Dispatch’s editorial board.

Those close to Scott, who is the sheriff of Franklin County, said he opposes legalizing marijuana for recreational use.

But both Democrats also agree that voters should decide whether to make pot legal.