Virginia Legislature throws out retail cannabis law

A Virginia legislature this week declined to introduce a bill to regulate retail cannabis sales, effectively scrapping a proposal that would have set the stage for recreational marijuana sales to begin by 2024. The measure, Senate Bill 1133 by Democratic Sen. Adam Ebbin, was defeated by a House subcommittee on Tuesday by a 5-3 vote along party lines, with the panel’s Republican majority opposed.

Recreational marijuana was legalized in Virginia in July 2021 with laws allowing adults 21 and older to possess up to one ounce of weed and grow up to four cannabis plants at home. The legislation required another vote by lawmakers to authorize the regulated sale of adult-use cannabis and set a target date of January 1, 2024 to begin legal sales of recreational cannabis. But so far, the Republican majority in the House of Representatives, which took control in the 2022 general election, has failed to support a bill to create a legal framework to regulate the sale of recreational marijuana.

“It’s legal to possess small amounts of cannabis, it’s legal to grow your own cannabis,” Ebbin said, before the subcommittee voted to overturn the law. “Yet we’re dragging our feet to build a retail market that could generate hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue, offer a tried-and-tested product for adults, and be kept out of the reach of children.”

Ebbin’s bill, which is similar to a measure he sponsored last year and also failed to win committee approval, would have allowed recreational marijuana sales to begin by Jan. 1, 2024. Sales would begin initially at existing medical marijuana dispensaries and businesses owned by people living in “historically disadvantaged communities.”

The legislation would also have allowed the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority to begin issuing licenses to new recreational cannabis businesses on July 1, 2024. The measure passed last week by the Democratic-controlled Senate by a 24-16 vote, supported by some Republican senators.

On Tuesday, a General Bills Subcommittee voted without discussion to introduce Senate Bill 1133, likely nullifying the bill for the remainder of the 2023 legislative session. The bill could be revisited at a later date, but the proposal is likely dead until the legislature reconvenes in 2024.

The Republican governor focused on Delta-8 THC

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, a Republican who was also elected in 2022, has officially said he has “no position” on legislation authorizing and regulating the retail sale of adult-use cannabis. But a Youngkin administration official, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Agriculture and Forestry Parker Slaybaugh, spoke out against Ebbin’s Senate Bill 1133 at Tuesday’s subcommittee meeting.

Slaybaugh noted that Youngkin is focused on developing a policy to control unregulated hemp products, including delta-8-THC. Last month, the governor asked lawmakers to pass legislation that would regulate intoxicating hemp products.

“The bill I’m following and looking for is a bill that addresses hemp and Delta-8 and the regulations and consumer safety surrounding those products,” Youngkin said last month. “And right now we have products that are mislabeled and missold that are aimed at children.”

Proponents of regulating the sale of recreational marijuana say a failure to do so is largely responsible for the proliferation of unregulated intoxicating hemp products that can be easily purchased at gas stations and convenience stores across Virginia. However, the House of Delegates has declined to introduce two other bills regulating the sale of recreational marijuana in committee this term, including House Bill 1464 sponsored by Republican Delegate Keith Hodges and House Bill 1750 by Republican Delegate Michael weaver

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