Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes is convening a task force to develop a proposal to legalize medical marijuana in the commonwealth.
A release from her office on Wednesday said the group will study and propose potential implementation and regulation processes with a goal of seeing legislation pass in 2018.
Grimes said evidence shows cannabis is beneficial to individuals with physical and mental illnesses, particularly veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress.
The task force would include members of the medical community, law enforcement and other state agencies, medical marijuana advocates and military veterans.
Legalizing marijuana to some extent has growing bipartisan support among Kentucky lawmakers. According to Grimes' office, Democratic State Representative John Sims is crafting medical marijuana legislation for the 2018 session.
A Democratic state senator introduced a limited medical marijuana bill last session, but it failed to get a hearing. A Republican State Senator recently suggested legalizing the drug to generate tax revenue for the pension crisis.
A majority of Kentuckians favor legalizing medical marijuana, according to a Kentucky Health Issues Poll.
The District of Columbia and 29 states have legalized marijuana to some extent.
