JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – After years as a community organizer in Jacksonville, state Rep. Angie Nixon now represents residents in north and northwest Duval County as a member of the Florida House of Representatives.
Nixon ousted two-term state Rep. Kimberly Daniels last year in the Democratic primary in November and did not face a challenger in the general election.
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Since arriving in Tallahassee ahead of the start of Florida’s legislative session, Nixon has hit the ground running.
She has since attached her name to HB 593, a bill that was filed in January and involves medical marijuana retail facilities.
“It’s a two-part issue,” Nixon told Kent Justice on This Week in Jacksonville. “Currently in the state of Florida, medical marijuana is legal, however, just the rollout of it has been really, really ridiculous, bad, abysmal.”
Nixon said right now there is vertical integration within the industry, meaning only those who grow and process marijuana can also sell it. She said her bill would allow more people to own dispensaries and create more accessibility for those who are prescribed medical marijuana.
“We know Florida is all about job creation and, hopefully, this bill does pass that we can address those concerns,” Nixon said.
The bill would also impose criminal penalties for specified unlicensed activities.
There is a companion bill, SB 562, in the Florida Senate sponsored by Democrat Perry Thurston.
You can watch her full interview about the bill and her life in Tallahassee on This Week in Jacksonville, Sunday at 9 a.m. on Channel 4 and at noon on CW17.