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Legalizing medical marijuana is a hot topic this legislative session. But lawmakers say it won’t pass this year.

Instead Iowa senators are pushing the Iowa Legislative Council to study the matter over the summer. Then the group would present its finding before the next session.

Senator Joe Bolkcom and others appeared on a tapping of IPTV’s “Iowa Press” to discuss the matter Friday.

Bolkcom says there is a bipartisan group of senators backing the study.

“There’s interest beyond party affiliations about trying to provide compassion and medicine to these folks in our communities,” Sen. Bolkcom says. “I think more members of the legislature are slowly learning more about it and they’re hearing from their constituencies it’s a real issue they’d like addressed.”

The director of Iowa’s Office of Drug Control Policy, Steve Lukan also spoke. He says the governor is right to be cautious of moving forward too quickly.

Lukan says some states with medical marijuana laws are seeing negative side effect including misuse and abuse.