New Hampshire lawmakers debated the latest proposal on marijuana legalization Tuesday, which takes a step away from Gov. Chris Sununu’s model of a strictly state-run business. Chris Sununu, a Republican, and the franchise-based system that was contemplated last year by a commission of state officials on legalization. It would instead license private operators, and set strict limitations on store appearance, marketing and advertisement.
Rep. Erica Layon, (R), the plan’s sponsor says that the proposal will meet Sununu concerns about health and security while avoiding the legal risks to the state if the government takes control of the stores’ daily operations.
She told Marijuana moment that she has not been able to meet with the Governor to discuss the proposed legislation.
Layon outlined the latest changes in a bill amendment, HB 1633. This bill is being considered by a House Commerce and Consumer Affairs Subcommittee. She detailed the changes in the amendment at a Tuesday meeting. Lawmakers are expected to vote on the measure the following week.
Layon, in the meantime, has promised to work with other people, including civil rights activists, public safety officials and the state Department of Health and Human Services, as well as fellow legislators, to reach compromises on the remaining issues.
She said that she was “very hopeful” about the possibility of getting something done, but “it’s not guaranteed.”
In recent legislative sessions the House has passed marijuana legalization legislation only to have them fail in Senate. Many speakers at the meeting on Tuesday stressed that any plan passed by the House must be acceptable to the Senate and Sununu’s Office.
According to Layon’s new plan, fifteen retail stores will open in the state two years after passage of the bill. The number was determined in a directive issued by Sununu’s Office to the State Commission on Legalization last year, despite objections from members.
After a 30-month initial period, regulators will then assess on an annual basis if more stores are needed.
In contrast to most states, all general advertising, including billboards, social media, and other forms of mass communication, would be outright banned. Layon said that advertisements on marijuana-specific platforms such as Weedmaps would be permitted to help consumers find stores.
She said, “Let’s begin small and not with a large-scale advertising campaign.” “That can be addressed in the future once we have a better understanding of the market.”
Layon explained that companies could not use slang or other marketing to promote marijuana, or encourage excessive consumption, such as by using a logo with someone’s bloodshot eyes. Regulations could also limit the names of businesses or other marketing.
These provisions will effectively stop marketing to children and encourage irresponsible usage without the government running the business or demanding detailed control of franchisees.
Layon said to the workgroup, “We don’t have to tell someone how to run their business, as long as we can tell them they cannot use vulgar or crass images displayed outside their store.”
Layon is against the franchise model. He warns that construction of this system could expose the state to legal risks, whether in the case federal enforcement of marijuana or third-party suits against the state.
She told legislators that the state “is allowed to have health and security regulations and normal government regulation of a business, without this falling under a franchising.” This operational control is what’s so dangerous.
She said, “That’s why, instead of a franchising model, we have presented a cannabis retail outlet.”
The panel members appeared to be receptive of the plan even though they raised several outstanding issues.
The first was the annulment criminal records. Under Layon’s proposition, people could petition to have their records annulled if they were charged with possession of something less than legal. Layon has been in talks with ACLU on this issue.
A second issue arose in relation to a provision requiring the tracking of consumer trends, health outcomes and baseline levels prior to legalization. Some state officials said that this was unrealistic given the available data. Layon promised to work with DHHS, the Department of Public Safety and other state agencies to find a solution.
Sununu’s 15-store limit is also opposed by some lawmakers, who worry that it will not meet consumer demands and encourage corrupt business practices.
Rep. Jared Sullivan, (D), compared the limit with a taxi medallion and said the issue was a “key sticking-point,” but he stated he would be willing to compromise. He and Layon agreed that they would discuss alternative options, such as increasing the number of licenses available each year.
She told the panel that Layon’s amendment also allows for larger “desktop vapourization devices” but not smaller ones. The serving size of edibles and beverages will be reduced to 5 milligrams THC, down from 10mg in some previous proposals. However, package limits remain at 100mg THC.
Layon stated that regulators could set caps by rulemaking. Poly-drug-products, such as marijuana-alcohol mixtures, would be illegal.
Layon noted that this issue had already been addressed in another bill.
The bill specifies that the regulations for intoxicating hemp products must be no less restrictive than those surrounding marijuana.
Layon’s proposed amendment, in response to a request to license cannabis distributors under the law, would not create an independent distribution license. Instead it would allow other licensed businesses distribute products as part their business.
Current medical marijuana businesses in the state, also known as alternative treatment centres (ATC), could claim a limited number of adult-use licenses if they met all the qualifications and filed by the deadline.
The operators would be encouraged to enter into the market as soon as they receive a license.
Layon explained that “both the outlets and cultivators will need to open or show significant progress within a specified time period to keep their license in effect.” This is to stop anyone from getting a licence and then sitting on it.
The amendment being considered also seeks to stop people from only obtaining licenses to sell them. However, Layon stated that the language could change if 15 stores were allowed to operate statewide.
Layon stated that she did not initially plan to be the primary sponsor of a proposal for legalization this year. She thought that members of a state legalization commission would present a bill.
The state commission, led by Sen. Daryl Abbas(R), charged with studying the legalization of marijuana in New Hampshire released its final report in Decembre. This concluded months of meetings in which the members were unable to agree on the way forward in terms cannabis policy for the state.
The report stated that “the Commission ultimately voted to not recommend legislation for 2024 Session.” The report stated that the Commission failed to reach consensus due to a number of unresolved problems.
Abbas spoke at the House Hearing on Tuesday and warned that any deviation from the Senate Leadership’s and Sununu’s wishes for the measure could torpedo it.
He said that “this entire thing will fall apart” if you diverge from the original plan.
He continued: “We differed on many things during the commission hearing, but ultimately we came to an agreement on what we are going to do.”
The commission has stated that it was unable to reach a consensus. This is part of the reason for the current situation. The commission failed to meet its mandate of drafting legislation that would allow for legalization through a state run model.
The group was unable to reach an agreement on a number of issues, including the THC level allowed in legal cannabis products; penalties for public consumption; rules around motor vehicle operation; the creation of a body to approve Liquor Commission rulings and measures to prevent minors from accessing the product, as well as the number of retail stores permitted statewide, or whether home cultivation should be allowed.
The Commission to Study With the Goal of Proposing Legalization of State Controlled Sales of Cannabis, and Cannabis Products, conducted line-by-line reviews of the draft legislation that Abbas submitted in October. His staff stressed this was meant to be a starting place. After weeks of often heated debate between members the body voted to not recommend the bill to legislators.
Sununu’s list of demands at the last minute was the deciding factor for some members of the committee. The governor stated that he would only support 15 licensed marijuana retail outlets in the state and that he wanted to include provisions prohibiting cannabis businesses from lobbying or contributing to political campaigns.
In the legislation which created the Legalization Study Group, Commissioners had been given the task of studying the feasibility and drafting legislation for a state-run model cannabis.
- The state can control the distribution and access
- Keep marijuana out of the schools and away from children
- Control the marketing and messaging for the sale of marijuana
- Prohibit “marijuana Miles” or oversaturation in marijuana retail establishments
- Municipalities can choose whether to restrict or prohibit marijuana retail establishments
- Multi-drug abuse is reduced
- Has no additional tax to stay competitive
The Commerce and Consumer Affairs Committee was chaired last session by Rep. John Hunt, who also served on the Commission. They worked on marijuana reform extensively and tried to find a compromise. This included a system with multiple levels, including state-controlled shops, double licensing for medical cannabis dispensaries, and private businesses licensed by state agencies.
The panel reached a deadlock on the complicated legislation that was being considered after Sununu announced his surprise support for state-run legalization. The Senate , however, defeated a more traditional legalization bill, called HB 639 despite bipartisan support.
In May, the House rejected a separate marijuana legalization bill that was proposed as part a Medicaid expansion measure.
The Senate also moved to introduce another piece of legislation in the same month, which would have allowed designated caregivers and patients to grow up to 12 seedlings, 3 immature plants, and three mature plants for their own therapeutic use.
After rejecting reform bills in 2022 by the Senate, the House added legalization language to separate criminal justice legislation. But this was also rejected in the opposing chamber .
Read Erica Layon’s full amendment to the Working Group Tuesday:
Senators Tell DEA To Fully Legalize Marijuana, Demanding Answers On Rescheduling Process
Photo by Philip Steffan.
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