Connecticut officially legalizes recreational marijuana

After years of flirting with legalizing marijuana, the state of Connecticut is finally ready to make this official.

Today the state governor, Ned Lamont, signed a law legalizing the consumption of recreational pot for adults aged 21 and over. The new law will officially come into force on July 1st. However, retail sales are not expected to begin until 2022.

Lamont signed a bill that last week finally cleared the necessary legislative hurdles.

Legislators in the state’s Senate passed a bill last Thursday that would legalize adult recreational pot consumption. The vote was the second time that members of the state senate had decided on a legalization measure. Another bill was approved in the Chamber last week before being amended in the State House and sent back to the Senate.

The bill passed the state Senate Thursday 16-11, according to local television network NBC Connecticut. The result sent the legislation to the desk of Lamont, a Democrat who has made no secret of his support for the legalization of marijuana.

But state lawmakers have spent weeks ironing out the legislation. NBC Connecticut reported that “Members of the House on Wednesday deleted an amendment previously added by the Senate to the cannabis legalization bill that ensured that a” marijuana industry license applicant “would receive preferential status would include people previously arrested or convicted of selling, using, manufacturing or growing cannabis in certain geographic areas. “

The provision would have “also applied to persons whose parent, spouse or child has been arrested or convicted on the same charge. Lamont opposed such a provision and even threatened to veto the bill if it were adopted.

“It is fitting that the Act to Legalize Adult Cannabis Use and Combat Injustices caused by the Drugs War was finally passed today, on the 50th anniversary of President Nixon’s declaration of war. The war on cannabis, which was essentially a war on the people of Black and Brown communities, has not only caused injustice and greater inequalities in our state, but also done little to protect public health and safety, “Lamont said in a quoted one NBC Connecticut Statement.

He continued, “That is why I have tabled a bill and worked hard with our legislative partners and other stakeholders to create a comprehensive framework for a safely regulated market that prioritizes public health, public safety, social justice and justice. It will help eradicate the dangerous unregulated market and support a new, growing sector of our economy that will create jobs. “

“By allowing adults to possess cannabis, regulating its sale and content, training police officers in the latest techniques to detect and prevent driving disorders, and clearing criminal records of individuals with certain cannabis crimes, we are not only effectively modernizing our laws and inequalities We’ll keep Connecticut economically competitive with our neighbors, ”said Lamont.

The governor also announced that legalization will ultimately benefit Connecticut residents as the proceeds from marijuana sales go to recovery and prevention services. He told local residents that the law will ensure public safety, protect children and the most vulnerable in the community.

After years of trying, legalization is coming to Connecticut

Lamont has been campaigning for Connecticut legalization for years. In 2019, he and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo discussed a transstate legalization policy, but those efforts never really came to fruition, and earlier this year New York went its own way by ending prohibition in the state.

In February, Lamont stressed the importance of moving forward in light of the actions taken by Connecticut’s neighbors.

“Now our neighboring states are offering recreational marijuana on a legal and regulated basis,” said Lamont in his State of the State speech. “Massachusetts pharmacies do a lot of advertising here in Connecticut. And instead of leaving this market to the out-of-staters, or worse, the unregulated underground market, our budget is for recreational marijuana legalization. “

“Half of the tax revenue should be allocated to PILOT payments, in addition to a 3 percent local excise option. More importantly, my bill will allow the automated deletion of criminal records for people with marijuana drug possession, convictions and charges, ”added Lamont at the time.