Virginia’s Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee and the House of Representatives Appropriations Committee separately passed two different cannabis legalization laws that are to be presented to full committees this Friday February 5th. With SB 1406 and HB 2312, both Virginia chambers will discuss recreational cannabis. By presenting both bills this Friday, they can cross over to the other chamber for review.
Similarities
Both bills are similar to one another. Once they receive approval by their respective committees, another committee will be made of both House and Senate members. They will go over the differences between each bill and merge them together into a simple piece of legislation. Then the new bill can move to Governor Northam for approval. Once it reaches the governor’s desk, he is expected to sign it into law. The governor has been pushing for cannabis reform, even stating legalization would be a top priority to him this year.
In both bills, citizens 21 and over can purchase and possess up to one ounce of cannabis. They may also grow up to four plants in for personal use. Two of those plants can be mature. Revenue from sales would also go towards funding pre-k programs for at-risk youth and supporting public health initiatives. The House did not introduce any new amendments. However, the Senate said they wanted to see where citizens stood on recreational cannabis legalization. The Senate also wondered how creating a new general assembly cannabis oversight committee would help review and implement the program. There would also be an automatic expungement for certain prior marijuana convictions for citizens upon passage of this new bill.
Next Step
Additionally, the Watson Center released a survey about what citizens thought, with recreational cannabis legalization being a subject.
“Our survey shows strong support for marijuana legalization (68% support/strongly support to 32% oppose/strongly oppose), a measure championed by Governor Ralph Northam,” the report said. “Majorities of Virginians across demographic and partisan lines back legalization, though to different degrees. Younger Virginians’ support is strong, with 79% of those ages 18-44 either supporting or strongly supporting the proposal, compared to 57% for those 45 and older. In addition, 78% of Black voters surveyed favor legalization, compared to 65% of white voters. Democrats show greater support for legalization than Republicans (80%- 51%).”
Future
Lawmakers and supporters of recreational cannabis reform are proud of what they have accomplished in such a short period of time. They have expanded on previous bills and reforms created in the past few years. These include the House’s legislation for employment protection for medical cannabis patients. It also allows patients in hospice, nursing, and assisted living facilities to have medical cannabis access. Finally, for those who have cannabis certification and continue to receive approval for certifications through telehealth post-pandemic times.
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