At its final meeting, a New Hampshire commission tasked with drafting legislation for legalizing marijuana through a state-controlled store system decided to not issue any recommendations. This leaves questions open about how lawmakers plan to proceed with cannabis reform during the upcoming 2024 session.
The 19-member panel failed to reach a consensus after months of meetings. The confusion was further exacerbated by a request made at the last minute by Governor. Chris Sununu, a Republican who has threatened to veto any legislation he does not agree with, demanded that the number of retail storefronts in New Hampshire be restricted to 15 and that marijuana businesses are prohibited from lobbying for political causes or making contributions to politics.
Sen. Becky Whitley, a member of the group (D), appeared to blame Sununu’s lackluster performance.
@GovChrisSununu has once again stepped in to stop our legalization efforts. It’s time for a Governor to listen to Granite Staters who support legalization. #NHPolitics https://t.co/bPa4KZLeGX
Becky Whitley 28 November 2023
The commission’s progress over the last few weeks has been marked with frustration and infighting between members. Some of them have opposed legalization entirely.
One member of the Commission said that the new proposal at the meeting earlier this month was the “most irresponsible and dangerous legislation I have ever been involved in.”
The panel was initially formed this summer in order to examine state-run cannabis shops. This model is supported by Sununu and would be similar to how the state deals with liquor sales. In September, members began to consider an alternative franchise-style system. Under this system, the state would regulate and oversee the marijuana industry, while private licensees handle the day-to-day sales and cultivation.
Recent meetings of the commission have been devoted to a line by line review of the draft legislation circulated on October 2 by Sen. Daryl Abbas, the chair of the committee. Abbas’s office initially described the draft legislation as “extremely flexible” and meant only as a starting point.
Members were at odds over a number of issues after hours of meandering and sometimes standoffish discussion, including the penalties for public consumption, as well as how to integrate the existing medical marijuana dispensaries in the state, also known by the name alternative treatment centers (ATCs).
Abbas incorporated notes from commission meetings into the revised draft. His staff had hoped to make it available last week, but did not actually distribute the document until Monday morning’s final meeting of the commission. Some members were unsure why certain revisions had been made. Others noted that some planned additions to the bill had not been included in the revised draft.
The panel’s decision to not issue recommendations on Monday isn’t fatal for New Hampshire’s legalization efforts, but it’s a sign that the proposal has a low chance of passing in the state legislature. This is the only state in New England that has not legalized marijuana.
Matt Simon, director of public relations and government affairs at medical marijuana provider GraniteLeaf Cannabis, said: “It is still possible for a legalization measure to pass in 2024. But the odds seem significantly lower following today’s meeting.” The future of cannabis policy is as clear as mud in New Hampshire.
Simon, who was a guest speaker and an observer at virtually all the meetings of the commission, blamed the group’s tangled process for the failure to make recommendations.
He said that a study commission begins by evaluating the goals of the group, identifying the important policy decisions to be made and scheduling expert testimony. They then create a study plan. “Unfortunately, the study commission spent most of its meetings wading in a first draft legislation. I can’t but think it would have been more productive to hear from experts on policy and learn about other states’ experiences so that they could make informed choices for New Hampshire.”
Simon predicted that a franchise model would still be introduced in New Hampshire next year. However, he said it “would have less momentum behind it” after the experience.
He told Marijuana Moment that this means less certainty both for ATCs as well as their patients.
He said that “our primary goal was to make sure that the Therapeutic Cannabis Program, and the ATCs had a clear pathway forward”, “and that patients would not be left behind when the transition to adult use cannabis took place.” Unfortunately, the draft legislation presented today failed to meet this basic standard.
(Disclosure – Simon supports Marijuana Moment via a Patreon monthly pledge.
Timothy Egan, the chair of the New Hampshire Cannabis Association’s board of advisors, said that he was not surprised by the failure of the commission to reach consensus. He said that the committee process was not designed to lead to a consensus.
The commission also “refused to honor the bill’s requirements that NHCANN be called to testify”, referring the law that created the a href=”https://www.gencourt.state.nh.us/statstudcomm/details.aspx?id=1667″ rel=”noopener” target=”_blank”>commission/a>. The commission “refused” to comply with the requirement of the bill that NHCANN should be called to give testimony, referring to the commission.
Egan also said that Sununu’s “last-minute rug pulling” was irritating.
“15 Stores Only!?” “15 stores only!? “That one [multistate operator] will have an easier time gaining control of the market and setting wage standards and prices. “Where is the spirit of small business being recognized?”
As for Sununu’s requested anti-lobbying provisions, Egan called it “a joke,” noting that other regulated industries–including alcohol, tobacco, sports betting and charitable gaming–all engage in lobbying in New Hampshire.
Sununu stated earlier this month that he believes legalization is “inevitable” in the Granite State, even though he’s “not a big believer” about the idea. The commission’s refusal to make recommendations could ultimately free the governor of having to sign , or reject a legalization measure before the end of his term. Sununu said that he will not run for re-election in 2024.
Under the legislation which created the study group commissions had been tasked to study the feasibility of an state-run model for cannabis and draft legislation that:
- Keep marijuana out of the schools and away from children
- Controls the marketing 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
Rep. John Hunt, a Republican who served as the chairperson of the House Commerce and Consumer Affairs Committee in this year’s session, spent a lot of time working on marijuana reform during the session and tried to find a compromise for legalization by implementing a system with multiple levels, including state-controlled shops and dual licensing, which would allow existing medical cannabis dispensaries to continue operating, and private businesses licensed to individuals privately by state agencies.
Hunt’s House committee, however, came to a deadlock on the complex legislation that was being considered after Sununu made his surprise announcement about his support for state-run legalization. The Senate , however, defeated a more traditional legalization bill HB 639 despite bipartisan support.
The legalization study provisions in the underlying legislation of the commission that was signed into law by the governor would also remove the requirement that patients with pain first try opioid-based treatment before they receive a recommendation for medical cannabis.
The law also clarifies that it is not intended for the state to allow the sale of intoxicating hemp-derived products such as delta-8THC.
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 the Senate rejected reform legislation in 2022 the House included legalization as an amendment to separate criminal-justice-related legislation, but this was also rejected in the opposing chamber.
Fetterman says Pennsylvania is being ‘Lapped’ by neighboring states on marijuana legalization because GOP opposes a ‘common sense’ policy
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