In this Friday, April 22, 2016 a marijuana bud is seen at a medical marijuana facility in Unity, Maine. A growing number of health experts and law enforcement officials are making the case that marijuana could help reduce the numbers of overdoses and redirect money into fighting heroin and other opiates. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)
In this Friday, April 22, 2016 a marijuana bud is seen at a medical marijuana facility in Unity, Maine. A growing number of health experts and law enforcement officials are making the case that marijuana could help reduce the numbers of overdoses and redirect money into fighting heroin and other opiates. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty) Credit: Robert F. Bukaty

Montpelier — Gov. Peter Shumlin wants House Speaker Shap Smith to bring a bill legalizing marijuana to the House floor for a vote, but Smith says he’s not going to do that at this time because there’s not nearly enough support in the House to pass the legislation.

The Senate and the House have taken very different approaches to the legalization of marijuana.

The Senate bill creates a regulatory structure for the sale of marijuana at retail outlets across the state. Several House committees have rejected this approach in favor of a plan that allows for the possession and cultivation of small amounts of marijuana.

Smith has suggested that a possible compromise would be to hold a non-binding statewide referendum on the issue in November as a way to better gauge public opinion.

Shumlin said he’s not interested in the referendum plan. Instead, he wants a vote in the House.

“I think the Senate passed an excellent bill. I think the majority of Vermonters want a smart legalization policy — that’s what the Senate passed,” Shumlin said. “The Ways and Means Committee in the House passed a good bill. It’s beyond me why the speaker doesn’t put the bill on the floor to be voted by the Legislature.”

Smith said there’s a good reason why he’s not bringing the Senate bill to the floor for a vote.

“I can tell you that based on the counting that we have done, if the Senate bill is in that conference report, it will lose and it will lose badly,” Smith said.

Senate President John Campbell voted against the legalization bill in the Senate. Campbell said he also opposes the non-binding referendum plan because the issue is too complicated to be presented to voters in a referendum ballot.

“We don’t have a referendum state, so I do not support any type of referendum,” Campbell said. “I think that that would actually muddy the waters because … that’s where the complicated issues come in. And so I just think it would be very difficult for us, through a referendum, to really work through those details.”

This referendum approach was last used in 1976 when Vermonters overwhelmingly supported a plan to create the state lottery.

Campbell also said he’s determined not to let disagreements over the future of the marijuana bill extend the session beyond May 7.