PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Marijuana legalization advocates were at the State House Thursday calling on General Assembly leaders to finally allow a vote on the issue.

Leaders from Regulate Rhode Island, the local arm of the Marijuana Policy Project, delivered a petition with more than 1,300 signatures to House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello and Senate President M. Teresa Paiva Weed.

The petition sites a recent Brown University poll showing that 55 percent of Rhode Islanders support passing a law to legalize and tax marijuana, and calls on the General Assembly to allow votes on two identical bills — H7752 and S2420 — which would legalize the drug.

Marijuana legalization bills have been introduced every year since 2011, but none have ever seen floor vote or even a committee vote in either chamber. The bills are consistently "held for further study," an action taken by committees of lawmakers when they're not ready to vote on an issue and continue to consider testimony.

"We believe that by not allowing a vote the speaker and the Senate president are implicitly endorsing the failed status quo," Regulate Rhode Island Director Jared Moffat said.

Andrew Horwitz, a co-chair of Regulate Rhode Island and the assistant dean for experimental education at the Roger Williams University School of Law, said it's the legislature's job to implement solutions, "not to simply refuse to act."

"I'm not standing here because I think smoking marijuana is a good thing — particularly for our young children," Horwitz said. "I'm standing here because it's become abundantly clear that our current approach of prohibition is an abysmal failure."

The group's actions, however, didn't appear to have much impact on General Assembly leaders Thursday afternoon. Both Mattiello and Paiva Weed said they don't expect to see votes on marijuana legalization this year. Earlier in the session, the House appeared to be entertaining legislation calling for a non-binding referendum on legalization, but that discussion has fizzled out.

“I do not anticipate the bill will be considered by the House this year. I have always been open to this issue and we will look at it again next year, but there are still many aspects that need to be carefully studied before moving forward," Mattiello said.

Voters in Massachusetts will likely see a marijuana legalization question on the ballot this November.

Moffat also cited a point used in recent weeks stating that a majority of lawmakers in the House and Senate also support marijuana legalization. Sen. Joshua Miller, the sponsor of the Senate legislation, has said he's tracked who supports the bill. He has noted it's a hot button issue in an election year and some have not wanted to publicly state their support.

jbogdan@providencejournal.com

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On Twitter: @JenniferBogdan