Rhode Island House Speaker Joe Shekarchi, D, spoke with a local radio station about the current status of cannabis legalization. Lawmakers have not come to a consensus on a legalization bill. Regardless, they continued to work together to make something “workable.” 

There could still possibly be a fall special session, where recreational cannabis legalization would be the main focus. It depends on how lawmakers come together before a session is called. “It really depends if we can come to some kind of resolution of consensus on a couple of major bills,” Speaker Shekarchi said. “If we can, we certainly would come back.”

Legislation

This past session, the Rhode Island Senate passed a recreational cannabis legalization bill, surprising many. There had been talks about leaving it for next year. However, Senate President Dominick Ruggerio, D, explained the change. He isn’t disappointed the House didn’t have a chance to pass the bill. It came late in the regular session. “What we (the Senate) really wanted to do was send it (legalization bill) over and have them (House) take a look at it,” Ruggerio told local reporters.

“Unfairly, sometimes I have or the House gets blamed for stopping the legalization of recreational use of marijuana, when in reality there is no consensus,” Speaker Shekarchi responded in his recent interview. “If we can come to some closeness, in the several different proposals, then we’ll move some kind of legislation. But if not, it just needs more work—and it’s very workable, so it’s very much something that can happen, we just have to put the effort in and make it happen.”

Speaker Shekarchi also spoke with Marijuana Moment about the legalization situation. “As I have done with other issues, my role will be to bring the parties together and see if we can reach a consensus. I will be working on the issue this summer and fall, and if an agreement can be reached, it is possible that one piece of legislation will be brought before the legislature for future consideration. But there is a lot of work to be done to reach consensus.”

Future

While the debate continues behind the scenes, Speaker Shekarchi says legalization is “inevitable.”

As of now, both Connecticut and Massachusetts offer both medical and recreational cannabis for citizens. But Rhode Island won’t let the pressure of other states get to them. “I’m not in any hurry to legalize marijuana for the sake of legalizing it. I want to do it right,” Speaker Shekarchi said. “It doesn’t matter to me if we’re the last state in the union to legalize it or we never legalize it, but I need to do it right.”

If the Rhode Island Congress heads back for a fall special session, we will update you with the latest. 

Make sure to check back for more cannabis and hemp related news.