Cannabis reform efforts notched numerous victories in the first half of 2023, with Delaware and Minnesota becoming the 22nd and 23rd states, respectively, to legalize adult-use marijuana and Kentucky becoming the 38th in the nation to approve a medical marijuana program.
The Marijuana Policy Project, an advocacy organization that has pushed for cannabis policy reform in several states, said in a recent announcement that 2023 was "shaping up to be another landmark year" for marijuana legalization. But the first half of the year also saw voters in Oklahoma roundly reject a referendum to legalize recreational marijuana during a special election in March, while Virginia lawmakers failed to pass legislation to regulate cannabis sales, despite decriminalizing the drug for adult possession and use two years ago. Here are some of the victories and setbacks for cannabis legalization so far this year. 3 More States Approve Adult-Use, Kentucky OKs Medical Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz in May signed a bill to allow sales of recreational cannabis and create a tax structure for the drug. The law took effect June 30 and made Minnesota the 23rd state to legalize adult-use cannabis. H.F. 100 imposes a 10% gross receipts tax on the sale of cannabis products, to be paid by the retailer. The bill also levies the 10% tax on someone who "receives cannabis products for use or storage" in Minnesota. Walz said in a statement at the time that the legalization would stimulate Minnesota's economy. "By legalizing adult-use cannabis, we're expanding our economy, creating jobs and regulating the industry to keep Minnesotans safe," he said. Minnesota's legalization came on the heels of a similar reform win in Delaware, where the governor allowed a pair of bills to become law in April without his signature. H.B. 1, which removes all penalties for personal use and possession for people over age 21, and H.B. 2, which creates a regulated market for adult-use cannabis under the ambit of a new Office of Marijuana Control Commissioner, had been approved by the state Legislature with majorities large enough to overcome a veto. Gov. John Carney, a Democrat, said in a statement at the time that while he supports medical cannabis and Delaware's decriminalization law, he believes legalization of recreational cannabis is "not a step forward," but that prolonging debate won't serve Delawareans. "I want to be clear that my views on this issue have not changed," Carney said in the April statement. "And I understand there are those who share my views who will be disappointed in my decision not to veto this legislation. I came to this decision because I believe we've spent far too much time focused on this issue, when Delawareans face more serious and pressing concerns every day. It's time to move on." Adult-use sales in Maryland commenced on the first day of July, with approximately 100 dispensaries across the state up and running, the Maryland Cannabis Administration, the state's cannabis regulator, announced June 30. The announcement comes less than two months after Gov. Wes Moore signed into law a bill to launch regulated sales of adult-use marijuana beginning in July and tax them at a 9% rate, following voters' overwhelming approval of legalization on Election Day last year. Maryland's adult-use legalization ballot measure, Question 4, passed with 67% of the vote. But other than including an effective date of July, the constitutional amendment had few details about how the market would be regulated. The entire amendment consisted of two sentences — one creating the right of adults 21 and over to possess and use cannabis, and the other directing the General Assembly to establish a legal structure for regulating and taxing cannabis. The state Legislature responded by writing and passing S.B. 516, which established the MCA to oversee the industry. "The administration has developed public and consumer education materials to encourage informed, responsible, and safe cannabis use and will continue to roll out a campaign in the coming weeks and months," said MCA Deputy Director Dawn Berkowitz in a June 30 statement. Kentucky became the 38th state to legalize medical marijuana in March when Gov. Andy Beshear signed legislation into law approving the creation of a state-regulated program. Beshear announced the signing one day after the state's House of Representatives approved the bill in a 66-33 floor vote and two weeks after the state Senate approved it in a 26-11 vote. Just before signing the bill at a news conference, Beshear called it "historic," and noted that the people of the state have been pushing for it for years. "These folks want and deserve safe and effective methods of treatment," he said at the news conference. "We needed legislative action, and last night the General Assembly delivered." In a statement, Beshear added that the bill is aimed at reducing Kentuckians' reliance on addictive opioids while providing them with relief from severe and chronic pain. "In November, I signed an executive order to help Kentuckians with certain medical conditions, like our veterans suffering from PTSD, find safe and effective relief through medical cannabis," Beshear said in the release. "Now, I am finally able to sign this legislation into law and fully legalize medical cannabis — something the majority of Kentuckians support." Okla. Voters Say No; Lawmakers in Texas and Virginia Punt Oklahoma voters in March decisively rejected a referendum to legalize recreational marijuana and tax and regulate its sale during a special election. Voters rebuffed the legalization measure, designated State Question 820, with 62% of the electorate voting against it. In rejecting recreational legalization, Oklahoma followed the lead of Arkansas, North Dakota and South Dakota, each of which rebuffed proposals to bring the states from medical-only marijuana use to full legalization on Election Day last November. "Oklahoma's wholesale rejection of marijuana legalization is titanic, given the context," Luke Niforatos, executive vice president of the anti-legalization advocacy group Smart Approaches to Marijuana, said at the time. "This makes now four out of six states rejecting legalization over the past year. It's unprecedented in the modern era of marijuana ballot measures." The repudiation also indicates that Oklahomans oppose liberalizing the state's marijuana laws further after the state legalized medical cannabis by ballot referendum in 2018, with 57% of voters approving the measure. Since then, the industry has been regulated by the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority, or OMMA, the same agency that would have been tasked with overseeing adult-use cannabis if S.Q. 820 had passed. Cannabis has been legal for personal use and possession in Virginia since 2021, but the state has not yet established a regulated marketplace. Republicans in Richmond have generally opposed cannabis reform, with Gov. Glenn Youngkin saying his priority is reining in unregulated sales of hemp-derived cannabinoids. A cannabis regulation bill passed the Democrat-controlled state Senate earlier this year on a largely party-line 24-16 vote, with two Republicans joining the Democratic majority to approve the bill and no Democrats voting against it, only for it to die in a GOP-controlled House of Delegates Subcommittee. The bill, S.B. 1133, would have regulated the state's cannabis market under a new Cannabis Control Authority and included provisions governing the packaging of products containing Delta-8 THC. It would have also imposed a 21% excise tax and allowed local municipalities to levy their own 3% tax. "It's unfortunate that the Youngkin administration has yet to get on board with taking control of Virginia's marijuana market," JM Pedini, executive director of the Virginia chapter of legalization advocacy organization NORML, told Law360. "Only through commonsense regulation allowing for the legal, licensed commercial production and sale of cannabis can states ... best address adult consumers' demand while ensuring product safety and keeping marijuana largely out of the hands of young people," Pedini added. "The lack of legal access in the Commonwealth has not only led to an ever-expanding illicit market, but continues to put public health and safety at risk." Finally, in Texas, lawmakers considered proposals to decriminalize simple possession of cannabis and to expand the state's medical low-THC program, both of which were approved in the state House of Representatives only to die in the Senate. The decriminalization bill, H.B. 218, authored by Democratic Reps. Joe Moody, Harold Dutton and Rafael Anchía and Republican Reps. Charlie Geren and Briscoe Cain, was approved by the House on a vote of 87-59, but its companion bill failed to get any traction in the other chamber before the session closed. The bill would have amended the state code to make possession of an ounce or less of cannabis a Class C misdemeanor, which does not come with a potential prison sentence. A separate bill that would have allowed physicians to prescribe low-THC oil for any condition for which they would ordinarily prescribe opioids similarly passed the House, but ultimately failed. Texas does not have legalized medical marijuana, but does allow qualifying patients to use low-THC oil for certain conditions. The legislation, H.B. 1805, was approved by the House on a 127-19 vote and included a provision that the state's health regulators could add another "debilitating medical condition" to the list of qualifying conditions.
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12/15/2023 01:50:47 am
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