New Mexico becomes latest state to legalize marijuana, a rebuttal to America's 'failed war on drugs'
cdavis@insider.com (Charles Davis) 4/12/2021
Adults in New Mexico will soon be able to possess and grow marijuana.
The state legalized recreational use of cannabis this year, with retail sales to begin by April 2022.
"We're going to start righting past wrongs of this country's failed war on drugs," Gov. Michelle Lujan-Grisham said.
Beginning this summer, New Mexicans 21 and older will be able to both possess and grow marijuana. The state on Monday became the latest to legalize the recreational use of cannabis - with retail sales to begin by early 2022.
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Democrat who in March convened a special session of the legislature to reform the state's drug laws, signed a legalization bill into law.
New Mexico has joined 17 other states and the District of Colombia in legalization the recreational use of marijuana, with retail sales to begin by April 2022. David McNew/Getty Images
Adults in New Mexico will soon be able to possess and grow marijuana.
The state legalized recreational use of cannabis this year, with retail sales to begin by April 2022.
"We're going to start righting past wrongs of this country's failed war on drugs," Gov. Michelle Lujan-Grisham said.
Beginning this summer, New Mexicans 21 and older will be able to both possess and grow marijuana. The state on Monday became the latest to legalize the recreational use of cannabis - with retail sales to begin by early 2022.
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Democrat who in March convened a special session of the legislature to reform the state's drug laws, signed a legalization bill into law.
She also put her signature on a companion bill that will give many with past marijuana convictions a clean record.
"We're going to start righting past wrongs of this country's failed war on drugs," Lujan-Grisham said in a statement. "And we're going to break new ground in an industry that may well transform New Mexico's economic future for the better."
One of the country's most impoverished states, a legal cannabis industry could spawn a $318 million market and more than 11,000 jobs, according to an economic analysis trumpeted by the governor.
Although New Mexico's political scene has long been dominated by Democrats, the state for years struggled to move forward with marijuana legalization, with reform efforts thwarted by more conservative members of the party. In 2020, however, several of those conservative Democrats lost primary races to more progressive challengers who went on to win in November, shifting the state Senate to the left.
While marijuana will become legal on June 29, New Mexico residents will, for a time, need to grow their own (under the new law, they are allowed up to six plants each). That's because the state will first need to develop both a regulatory infrastructure and sufficient commercial supply before allowing retail sales, which could begin as late as April 2022.
The upside for marijuana consumers is that, unlike in California and some other states that have legalized cannabis, local governments will not be able to issue blanket prohibitions on sales within their jurisdiction, the Albuquerque Journal reported. And anyone whose past offense would now be legal, or would have resulted in a lower sentence, will have their criminal record automatically expunged, per the Las Cruces Sun News.
Although New Mexico is known for its libertarian streak, the state's Republicans are displeased.
"Recreational marijuana is hardly a pressing issue," the New Mexico GOP said in a statement on Monday, arguing that cannabis legalization "will lead to even more crime, underage use, and impaired driving."
In fact, surveys have found that the rate of marijuana use by young people has either remained the same or declined in states that have legalized its recreational use. Studies have also failed to detect a clear connection between road safety and the legal status of cannabis. And researchers have found little to no impact on crime.
Eighteen states and the District of Colombia have now either voted or passed legislation to legalize recreational marijuana. Colorado, in 2012, was the first.
"We're going to start righting past wrongs of this country's failed war on drugs," Lujan-Grisham said in a statement. "And we're going to break new ground in an industry that may well transform New Mexico's economic future for the better."
One of the country's most impoverished states, a legal cannabis industry could spawn a $318 million market and more than 11,000 jobs, according to an economic analysis trumpeted by the governor.
Although New Mexico's political scene has long been dominated by Democrats, the state for years struggled to move forward with marijuana legalization, with reform efforts thwarted by more conservative members of the party. In 2020, however, several of those conservative Democrats lost primary races to more progressive challengers who went on to win in November, shifting the state Senate to the left.
While marijuana will become legal on June 29, New Mexico residents will, for a time, need to grow their own (under the new law, they are allowed up to six plants each). That's because the state will first need to develop both a regulatory infrastructure and sufficient commercial supply before allowing retail sales, which could begin as late as April 2022.
The upside for marijuana consumers is that, unlike in California and some other states that have legalized cannabis, local governments will not be able to issue blanket prohibitions on sales within their jurisdiction, the Albuquerque Journal reported. And anyone whose past offense would now be legal, or would have resulted in a lower sentence, will have their criminal record automatically expunged, per the Las Cruces Sun News.
Although New Mexico is known for its libertarian streak, the state's Republicans are displeased.
"Recreational marijuana is hardly a pressing issue," the New Mexico GOP said in a statement on Monday, arguing that cannabis legalization "will lead to even more crime, underage use, and impaired driving."
In fact, surveys have found that the rate of marijuana use by young people has either remained the same or declined in states that have legalized its recreational use. Studies have also failed to detect a clear connection between road safety and the legal status of cannabis. And researchers have found little to no impact on crime.
Eighteen states and the District of Colombia have now either voted or passed legislation to legalize recreational marijuana. Colorado, in 2012, was the first.
SANTA FE, N.M. — New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed legislation Monday legalizing recreational marijuana use within months and kicking off sales next year, making it the seventh state since November to put an end to pot prohibition.
© Provided by The Canadian Press
The governor, a Democrat, has supported marijuana reform as a way to create jobs and shore up state revenue.
On Monday, she also touched on concerns about the harm inflicted on racial and ethnic minorities by drug criminalization and tough policing, noting that the new law could free about 100 from prison and expunge criminal records for thousands of residents.
“It is good for workers. It is good for entrepreneurs. It is good for consumers," she said of legalization. “And it brings about social justice in ways in which we have been talking about and advocating for, for decades.”
The signed bill gives the governor a strong hand in oversight of recreational marijuana through her appointed superintendent of the Regulation and Licensing Department.
Agency Superintendent Linda Trujillo said people age 21 and over will be allowed start growing marijuana at home and possess up to 2 ounces (56 grams) of cannabis outside their homes starting on June 29.
Recreational cannabis sales start next year by April 1 at state-licensed dispensaries.
Lujan Grisham highlighted that licensed cannabis farmers can begin scaling up cultivation several months ahead of opening day in efforts to keep pace with demands when sales begin.
New Mexico voters ousted ardent opponents of legalization from the state Senate in the 2020 Democratic primary, opening the way for recreational marijuana.
The governor called a special legislative session to tackle the issue in late March after legalization efforts faltered.
Legislators rallied behind a legalization framework from state Rep. Javier MartÃnez of Albuquerque that provides automated procedures for expunging past pot convictions.
Martinez said he hopes that a spate of legalization efforts by states will spur the federal government to follow suit, linking tides of immigration from Central America to drug-cartel violence and related corruption.
“I grew up along the border. I’ve seen what the war on drugs has done,” Martinez said. “I’m proud that New Mexico — little old New Mexico — has done its part to tell the federal government once and for all to legalize cannabis for the people.”
Republican lawmakers were notably absent from the signing ceremony, though GOP state Sen. Cliff Pirtle was credited with influencing the outcome through a competing bill that emphasized free markets and public safety.
Regulators in early legalization states have been whipsawed by initial fluctuations in marijuana supplies and prices, amid concerns about child access and workplace and roadway safety.
In New Mexico, regulators will be able to put a cap on marijuana cultivation quantities for years to come and impose a per-plant state fee of up to $50 a year. The new law mandates child-proof packaging and defers to employers on whether workers can indulge in marijuana.
At the same time, home marijuana growers will be allowed to grow up to six plants per person, or 12 per household. The scent of marijuana will no longer be grounds for police searches.
Local governments can’t prohibit marijuana businesses from setting up shop. They can have a say through zoning about the location and hours of operation.
Medical marijuana dispensaries already are staking out territory in small towns near the border with Texas — a major potential market for marijuana tourism. It remains illegal to transport marijuana across state lines.
Challenges await state regulators as they prepare to accept applications for a variety of marijuana business licenses as soon as September. The state will license product testing labs, industrial operations that grow, refine, package and sell cannabis products and craft marijuana “microbusiness” that grow only up to 200 plants.
Rules also are due by the start of 2022 on product safety, minimum qualifications for a marijuana business license and standards for vetting and training “cannabis servers” — who must hold a state permit and be 21 or older.
The state will levy an excise tax on recreational pot sales that starts at 12% and rises over time to 18%, on top of current taxes on sales.
All taxes will be waived on medical marijuana. Decisions are still pending about exactly how much marijuana the industry must set aside for qualified medical cannabis patients.
Enrolment in the state’s existing medical marijuana program climbed in March to more than 112,000 patients -- about 5% of the state’s population of 2.1 million residents.
The approved legislation allows the state to forge agreements with Native American tribal governments that could open the marijuana industry to tribal enterprises.
Morgan Lee, The Associated Press
The governor, a Democrat, has supported marijuana reform as a way to create jobs and shore up state revenue.
On Monday, she also touched on concerns about the harm inflicted on racial and ethnic minorities by drug criminalization and tough policing, noting that the new law could free about 100 from prison and expunge criminal records for thousands of residents.
“It is good for workers. It is good for entrepreneurs. It is good for consumers," she said of legalization. “And it brings about social justice in ways in which we have been talking about and advocating for, for decades.”
The signed bill gives the governor a strong hand in oversight of recreational marijuana through her appointed superintendent of the Regulation and Licensing Department.
Agency Superintendent Linda Trujillo said people age 21 and over will be allowed start growing marijuana at home and possess up to 2 ounces (56 grams) of cannabis outside their homes starting on June 29.
Recreational cannabis sales start next year by April 1 at state-licensed dispensaries.
Lujan Grisham highlighted that licensed cannabis farmers can begin scaling up cultivation several months ahead of opening day in efforts to keep pace with demands when sales begin.
New Mexico voters ousted ardent opponents of legalization from the state Senate in the 2020 Democratic primary, opening the way for recreational marijuana.
The governor called a special legislative session to tackle the issue in late March after legalization efforts faltered.
Legislators rallied behind a legalization framework from state Rep. Javier MartÃnez of Albuquerque that provides automated procedures for expunging past pot convictions.
Martinez said he hopes that a spate of legalization efforts by states will spur the federal government to follow suit, linking tides of immigration from Central America to drug-cartel violence and related corruption.
“I grew up along the border. I’ve seen what the war on drugs has done,” Martinez said. “I’m proud that New Mexico — little old New Mexico — has done its part to tell the federal government once and for all to legalize cannabis for the people.”
Republican lawmakers were notably absent from the signing ceremony, though GOP state Sen. Cliff Pirtle was credited with influencing the outcome through a competing bill that emphasized free markets and public safety.
Regulators in early legalization states have been whipsawed by initial fluctuations in marijuana supplies and prices, amid concerns about child access and workplace and roadway safety.
In New Mexico, regulators will be able to put a cap on marijuana cultivation quantities for years to come and impose a per-plant state fee of up to $50 a year. The new law mandates child-proof packaging and defers to employers on whether workers can indulge in marijuana.
At the same time, home marijuana growers will be allowed to grow up to six plants per person, or 12 per household. The scent of marijuana will no longer be grounds for police searches.
Local governments can’t prohibit marijuana businesses from setting up shop. They can have a say through zoning about the location and hours of operation.
Medical marijuana dispensaries already are staking out territory in small towns near the border with Texas — a major potential market for marijuana tourism. It remains illegal to transport marijuana across state lines.
Challenges await state regulators as they prepare to accept applications for a variety of marijuana business licenses as soon as September. The state will license product testing labs, industrial operations that grow, refine, package and sell cannabis products and craft marijuana “microbusiness” that grow only up to 200 plants.
Rules also are due by the start of 2022 on product safety, minimum qualifications for a marijuana business license and standards for vetting and training “cannabis servers” — who must hold a state permit and be 21 or older.
The state will levy an excise tax on recreational pot sales that starts at 12% and rises over time to 18%, on top of current taxes on sales.
All taxes will be waived on medical marijuana. Decisions are still pending about exactly how much marijuana the industry must set aside for qualified medical cannabis patients.
Enrolment in the state’s existing medical marijuana program climbed in March to more than 112,000 patients -- about 5% of the state’s population of 2.1 million residents.
The approved legislation allows the state to forge agreements with Native American tribal governments that could open the marijuana industry to tribal enterprises.
Morgan Lee, The Associated Press
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