Voters approved Proposal 1 in November 2008, the "Michigan Medical Marihuana Act," removing state penalties for the use, possession, and cultivation of cannabis by patients in possession of a valid medical marijuana recommendation from their physician.
A 2018 initiative to legalize recreational use (the Michigan Regulation and Taxation of Marijuana Act) passed with 56% of the vote. State-licensed sales of recreational cannabis began in December 2019. The Act allows persons aged 21 and over to possess up to 2.5 ounces of cannabis in public, up to 10 ounces at home, and cultivate up to 12 plants at home.
Some cities and counties in Michigan decriminalized cannabis before the state legislation was passed. Famously, the college town of Ann Arbor decriminalized cannabis in 1972. However, most cities took steps many decades later, including Detroit, Flint, and Grand Rapids in 2012, Jackson and Lansing in 2013, and Mount Pleasant and Saginaw in 2014.
Michigan has a Social Equity Program. The Social Equity Program is available as a provision under the Michigan Regulation and Taxation of Marihuana Act (MRTMA) to promote and encourage participation in the marijuana industry by people from communities disproportionately impacted by marijuana prohibition and enforcement to impact those communities positively.