Why do Virginia lawmakers want to make 4 ounces of weed illegal again?

Virginia legislators are divided on when and how cannabis should be legalized in the state.

Lawmakers have issued a budget proposal that would make possession of cannabis weighing more than four ounces in public a criminal misconduct. Virginia lawmakers want to bring back legislation that would make such possession a crime again, not before a year after the state legislature voted to legalize adult-use recreational marijuana.

A year ago, the Virginia General Assembly passed a bill legalizing the possession of up to an ounce of weed for personal use. Under the bill, possession of cannabis weighing between one ounce and one pound was considered a civil offense carrying a twenty-five dollar fine at worst, but possession of more than a pound of weed is still a criminal offense.

Well, under this new budget proposal released by state lawmakers over the weekend, the crime of possessing more than four ounces of cannabis in public will be a Class 3 felony, punishable by a fine of up to $500 . And if he’s caught a second time, the offense will be charged as Class 2 misconduct, which, if convicted, could result in a six-month jail sentence and a fine of up to a thousand dollars.

According to a report by the Richmond Times-Dispatch, the bipartisan budget compromise has the support of Janet Howell, the chair of the Democratic Senate on Finance and Appropriations, and Republican House Speaker Barry Knight.

After the release of the budget proposal Sunday night, Barry Knight, Speaker of the Republican House, said they didn’t get everything they set out to do, but he thinks they’re pretty happy with what they got. He added that he didn’t think either the House would prevail over the Senate or the Senate would prevail over the House.

Last year, the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission proposed that Virginia follow in other states’ footsteps in acquiring greater levels of marijuana-related misconduct, a change it claimed was wanted by police.

Barry Knight’s testimony was that it remains connected to the actions of other states, so they are not alone out there and they know their law enforcement wants this to happen.

Some Virginia legislators and activists oppose recriminalization

As lawmakers take steps to pass the bill, marijuana activists and some lawmakers, as well as state Senator L. Louise Lucas, are opposed to amending the budget proposal. Senator Lucas tweeted that he previously voted against criminalizing cannabis. He is working to end this recent attempt to re-criminalize cannabis.

He went on to say that this is aimed at brown and black people who have a history of being accused of these crimes and that the state doesn’t need these laws to take them back in time.

Marijuana Justice Virginia group executive director Chelsea Highs Wise joined forces with other activist groups in an email sent to Howell Sunday night. She wrote in the email that lawmakers should stop looking for more ways to criminalize Virginians and that everyone should work to correct the mistakes of the destructive and failed prohibition.

Highs Wise added that Virginia officials must not turn the budget proposal into a legitimate workaround to impose what the government wants while shutting out the will and voice of the people. Virginia ACLU Legislative Director Ashna Khanna said Virginia should take the same approach as New Jersey because just this week they passed their legitimate cannabis plan, which not only fines and charges minors but sets up intervention services for them.

The budget contract also includes provisions for hemp

The budget compromises also include wording to create new labeling for hemp products and laboratory testing requirements. The proposal would ban the sale of products containing THC to anyone under the age of 21. However, it includes an exception for patients who need medical marijuana. The plan would also ban products sold in certain childlike forms or that are counterfeit products.

Virginia Cannabis Business Association lobbyist Dylan Bishop commended the Legislature and Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s administration for preparing a proposal in cooperation with the cannabis industry.

Dylan Bishop said in a statement that it adequately addresses legitimate public concerns about the safety of produce that is irresponsibly labeled and packaged without unfairly discriminating against Virginia’s farmers, small businesses and retailers. But JM Pedini, the executive director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) in Virginia, who supported legislation that would have seen regulation of Delta-8 products, claimed that the budget compromise left existing loopholes will not change .

This budget proposal isn’t the first time Virginia lawmakers have attempted to scrap the cannabis legalization law passed last year. During the regular session of this year’s General Assembly, Senator Adam Evin introduced a bill to regulate the sale of cannabis, which would create a new possession crime. And then, in April, the state Senate rejected another proposal, Youngkin’s, to criminalize possession of more than two ounces of weed under the Hemp Industry Act.

A decision could be made after the General Assembly held a special session to consider the budget proposal and the provision to re-criminalize possession of more than four ounces of weed.

bottom line

Although the bill to recriminalize possession of cannabis greater than four ounces has support from both Democrats and Republicans, there are still individuals in the Legislature, as well as cannabis activists, who see the bill as a step backwards and in the wrong direction.

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