Peach Tree Times

Georgia's House Speaker David Ralston voiced his disapproval after a bill that would allow open selection of companies that produce and sell medical marijuana oil failed in the state Senate.

Though the bill was advanced through the Georgia House of Representatives, the state Senate ultimately voted to table it, Fox 5 Atlanta reported.

"I'm really, really disappointed," Ralston said during a press conference. "We've been trying to get this done here in Georgia for about seven or eight years now, and it's still not done."

The bill would have allowed the state's Medical Cannabis Commission to openly license six companies by June 7 to produce medical marijuana and would have licensed three additional companies by next year, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. The legislation was aimed at more than 22,000 people who have been legally permitted to use medical marijuana since 2015 but presently have no legal way to obtain it.

Georgia's current medical marijuana regulations allow qualified individuals to own up to 20 fluid ounces of marijuana oil with low THC content, the Georgia Department of Public Health said in a FAQ. Georgia law also allows the state's health department to issue cards to qualified people to protect them from arrest for possession.

The bill's failure in the Senate now means the Georgia Medical Cannabis Commission will continue dealing with protesting companies who feel the process of awarding licenses is fatally flawed, Fox 5 Atlanta reported.

Dale Jackson, an advocate for medical marijuana and father to a son with autism who stands to benefit from the oil, was particularly upset about the tabled bill, Fox 5 Atlanta reported.

"The state of Georgia had three years and accomplished nothing," Jackson told Fox 5 Atlanta. "It's an abomination to the families of Georgia how messed up this commission is, and how leadership has failed the families of Georgia."