A Heller aide said the state would quit legal battles against the petition and allow the measure to move forward to the legislature. The decision also impacts a pair of antismoking initiatives.

The Marijuana Policy Project filed suit in U.S. District Court charging that Heller violated the First Amendment, due-process, and equal-protection rights of the petition-gatherers by changing the rules on the number of signatures required.

Organizers were originally told they needed to gather signatures equal to 10 percent of the voter turnout in the 2002 election, but Heller later changed the requirement to 10 percent of the 2004 turnout, which was much higher.

The state legislature will consider the marijuana and tobacco measures when it reconvenes this month; if lawmakers don't act on them within 40 days, the items will automatically be placed on the 2006 ballot for consideration by state voters.

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