Virginia Governor Signals He’ll Push To Legalize Marijuana On July 1, Ahead Of Schedule

Ahead of an end-of-month deadline to propose changes to a marijuana legalization bill that’s on his desk, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam (D) is signaling he’d like the state to legalize personal possession of cannabis as soon as July 1—two and a half years before lawmakers planned.

Under the legislature’s proposal, passed by the Senate and House of Delegates last month, possession of marijuana wouldn’t become legal until January 1, 2024—timed to coincide with the launch of the commercial market.

But while Northam has yet to formally declare whether he’ll seek to move up the timeline, he said in comments this week that he doesn’t like the idea of continuing to punish people for something that will soon be legal.

“I personally don’t think we should be arresting or penalizing somebody for something we’re getting ready to legalize,” he told VPM in an interview Wednesday. “I plan to place a number of amendments in front of the legislature, and hopefully we’ll be able to move those forward.”

The radio station also reported that several sources close to the governor have indicated he plans to move up legalization’s effective date.

A source familiar with the discussions told Marijuana Moment the governor’s office is also exploring a number of possible pathways to speed up other provisions of the legalization measure, including those concerning when sales could begin and the process for expunging past cannabis convictions—but has not yet made any final decisions.

Other specific amendments the governor might be considering ahead of his upcoming Wednesday deadline for proposing changes to the legislation remain unknown. It’s not clear, for example, whether moving up the date on personal possession would affect home cultivation for personal use, which also wouldn’t become legal until 2024 under the legislature’s plan.

Legalization advocates have asked the governor to consider additional changes to sections around new criminal offenses, such as for having open containers of cannabis, public consumption and bringing marijuana into the state from neighboring jurisdictions.

—Marijuana Moment is already tracking more than 900 cannabis, psychedelics and drug policy bills in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon supporters pledging at least $25/month get access to our interactive maps, charts and hearing calendar so they don’t miss any developments.Learn more about our marijuana bill tracker and become a supporter on Patreon to get access.—

Northam for weeks has been lobbied by lawmakers and advocates who’ve urged him to speed up the timeline on personal possession to address the state’s striking racial disparities in cannabis enforcement.

“I am encouraging my colleagues to join me in asking the Governor to #LegalizeMarijuana on July 1, 2021,” Senate President Pro Tem Louise Lucas (D) tweeted recently. “Kicking the can down the road has the effect of continued over policing of people of color.”

The governor’s chief of staff first signaled earlier this month that he was open to moving the legalization date.

On the other hand, a Republican congressman wrote to Northam, calling marijuana a “gateway drug” and asking the governor to veto the legislation altogether.

The plan to legalize personal possession in July isn’t new. As the bill moved through the legislature earlier this year, a Senate provision initially would’ve legalized possession and home cultivation on July 1. The House, meanwhile, wanted to delay legalization completely until the launch of the commercial market in 2024, giving the state time to establish a regulatory agency to oversee licensing and retail sales.

During negotiations between the two chambers, supporters of the later date won out.

The ACLU of Virginia condemned the bill after its passage, specifically criticizing the provision delaying legalization of possession until 2024 and saying it would “delay & deny justice to all those whose lives have been upended & who are still being harassed by police on the streets every day.”

The new changes, which would not legalize simple possession until 2024, do nothing to break the chains of marijuana prohibition.

It would delay & deny justice to all those whose lives have been upended & who are still being harassed by police on the streets every day.

— ACLU of Virginia (@ACLUVA) February 28, 2021

Virginia recently decriminalized possession of small amounts of cannabis, replacing penalties last summer with a $25 fine. According to court records, however, Black people are still four times more likely than white people to receive a citation despite no significant difference in marijuana use between the two groups.

Legalization advocates welcomed the governor’s comments signaling he is leaning toward recommending the timeline change.

“Since the initial introduction of the administration’s proposal, NORML has maintained that legalization ought to take effect on July 1 of this year, and that legal personal possession and cultivation need not be tied to legal retail sales,” Jenn Michelle Pedini, development director for NORML and executive director of the group’s Virginia chapter, said in a statement to Marijuana Moment. “While the legislature heard us clearly on this issue, we’re pleased that Governor Northam now appears to be following suit.”

🎉ACTION WORKS: The @GovernorVA is considering legalizing simple possession of marijuana on 𝗝𝘂𝗹𝘆 𝟭, 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟭!

The Governor is listening, folks. Keep up the pressure.

Here's an easy way to email him: https://t.co/e0ZO62E8RS#LegalizeItRighthttps://t.co/wqrud7Z5v4

— ACLU of Virginia (@ACLUVA) March 25, 2021

The legislature will consider Northam’s proposed changes during a short session set for April 7. Lawmakers in both chambers will need to approve the amendments in order for them to be added to the bill.

Support for legalizing marijuana is strong in Virginia, according to a poll released this month. It found that more than two-thirds of adults in the Commonwealth (68 percent) favor adult-use legalization, including a slim majority (51 percent) of Republican voters.

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Photo courtesy of Kyle Jaeger

Virginia Governor Considers Speeding Up Legal Marijuana Timeline

The governor’s chief of staff said he has not ruled out speeding up the timeline for legalizing cannabis possession.

By Ned Oliver, Virginia Mercury

An increasingly vocal group of Virginia lawmakers and advocates is urging Gov. Ralph Northam (D) to send down a legislative amendment that would make marijuana legal this year.

The General Assembly recently passed a bill to legalize the drug beginning in 2024—a three-year delay that was met with disappointment by a contingent of Democratic lawmakers, eight of whom refused to vote for the bill over concerns it didn’t do enough to address racial disparities in arrests and citations.

“I am encouraging my colleagues to join me in asking the Governor to #LegalizeMarijuana on July 1, 2021,” wrote Sen. Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, in a tweet this week. “Kicking the can down the road has the effect of continued over policing people of color.”

As Chief Co-patrons and advocate for legalization of marijuana, I am encouraging my colleagues to join me in asking the Governor to #LegalizeMarijuana on July 1, 2021. Kicking the can down the road has the effect of continued over policing people of color. https://t.co/aHew6oL61H

— L. Louise Lucas (@SenLouiseLucas) March 7, 2021

Virginia reduced the penalty for marijuana possession to a $25 fine last summer, but court records show Black people are still four times more likely than White people to receive a citation despite the fact there is no significant difference in use between the two groups.

The Senate’s version of this year’s legalization bill aimed to address that unequal enforcement by ending the prohibition on possessing and using the drug beginning in July, but the language was rejected by the House of Delegates.

House Majority Leader Charniele Herring, D-Alexandria, who carried the legislation in the House, has said she worried making the drug legal before businesses could be licensed to sell it would encourage the illicit market. She and others have said they view reducing the penalty for possession to a small fine as a sufficient interim step. (Herring’s communications director, Liddy Gallagher, did not respond to phone calls or emails seeking comment this week.)

Northam, meanwhile, has so far avoided weighing in, but the original language his administration proposed also delayed legalization until retail sales could begin.

“We did not draw a line in the sand on this issue—we were focused on keeping folks at the table so we could get this bill across the finish line,” Northam’s spokeswoman, Alena Yarmosky, said in an email. “We’re continuing to listen to the priorities of both chambers as we work on improving this bill between now and the reconvened session.”

Northam’s chief of staff, Clark Mercer, said this week that Northam has not ruled out speeding up the timeline, but said conversations with lawmakers in the House and Senate are just beginning.

Del. Don Scott, D-Portsmouth, said he was trying to be a “good teammate” by not raising the issue when the measure was before the General Assembly, citing intense disagreement between House and Senate lawmakers that nearly derailed the entire bill.

But now that the legislation is before Northam, he has joined Lucas and other lawmakers in publicly calling for Northam to amend it.

Scott said his position has been influenced by the court data showing disparate enforcement has continued since lawmakers voted to decriminalize the drug last year. The data, which was first obtained from the Supreme Court of Virginia by a coalition of advocacy groups, shows police around the state issued more than 4,500 citations in the second half of last year.

And in most localities, Black people were far more likely than White people to receive a citation. The disparity was particularly stark just north of Richmond in Hanover County, where Black people make up just 10 percent of the population but accounted for more than 60 percent of the 240 tickets issued.

The department’s spokesman, Lt. James Cooper, said in an email race plays no role in enforcement and that many of those citations were issued to non-residents, which he suggested could account for the disparity. “We not only serve the citizens of Hanover County, we also serve a very transient community,” he said.

For lawmakers, however, the data raises a red flag.

“If it was being enforced evenly, I would say that we may have a moment to wait,” Scott said. “But we can’t continue to stand by while this injustice continues.”

He said he thinks concerns about the illicit market are overblown.

“We already have a very healthy, thriving black market,” he said. “I can’t see it getting any worse.”

If Northam does propose amendments, lawmakers would approve or reject them during the assembly’s reconvened session on April 7.

This story was first published by the Virginia Mercury.

Top New York Lawmaker Says Legal Marijuana Talks With Governor Reached Point Of Screaming

New Jersey Lawmakers Advance Marijuana Sales Bills After Voters Approve Legalization

A New Jersey Senate and Assembly committee approved identical bills on Monday to implement marijuana regulations following voter approval of an adult-use legalization referendum last week.

The Senate Judiciary Committee and Assembly Oversight, Reform and Federal Relations Committee discussed the legislation, which was introduced on Friday. The Senate panel approved the bill in a 5-1 vote, with several abstentions, after debate over provisions concerning social equity, home cultivation and tax revenue allocation for law enforcement purposes.

A companion bill cleared the Assembly committee about an hour later.

Members of the Senate panel also took up and merged two bills to decriminalize cannabis in the short term. That passed as well. Meanwhile, the leader of the chamber is calling on the state attorney general to issue a directive to end prosecutions for low-level marijuana offenses.

Sen. Nicholas Scutari (D), chair of his Senate panel and sponsor of the legalization bill, called the drug war a “miserable failure” that has has a disparate impact on communities of color. He also argued that regulating cannabis would help quash the illicit market, generate needed tax revenue and free up law enforcement resources.

Under his bill—the Cannabis Regulatory, Enforcement Assistance and Marketplace Modernization Act—adults 21 and older would be allowed to purchase and possess up to an ounce of marijuana or five grams of concentrates. Retailers wouldn’t launch right away, but as the licensing system is set up, medical cannabis dispensaries would be able to sell marijuana products to adult consumers.

Local bans on cannabis shops would be permitted, but delivery services would be allowed statewide regardless of each jurisdiction’s policy. Retailers could also provide for on-site consumption with local approval. Home cultivation for personal use would be prohibited, unlike in most legal states.

These proposed regulations largely align with those included in a bill Scutari sponsored in the previous session that did not have enough votes to pass. The failure of the legislature to approve legalization led lawmakers to place the question of legalization before voters as a referendum.

“The people have spoken. Many have decided that what I’ve been saying for over a decade is true,” the senator said. “We’ve had enough. Marijuana should not be something that we treat differently than alcohol—that we should regulate it. We should ensure the safety of our citizens. And we should make reasonable regulations so that we can achieve a product that is safe for our people’s ingestion.”

In the Senate committee, certain legislators and advocates argued that the social equity and restorative justice provisions of the legislation are insufficient. For example, they said the home grow ban and licensing caps are antithetical to the intent of the ballot measure. A representative of the ACLU New Jersey called for some tax revenue to be reinvested in communities most harmed by the drug war.

With marijuana legalization, we have a historic opportunity for racial and social justice. We have to do it right.   There are two hearings today, and two Thursday, on legalization and decriminalization.   Above all, these policies MUST address the harms of the drug war.

— ACLU of New Jersey (@ACLUNJ) November 9, 2020

The legalization bill needs 3 more things: -Investment in communities most harmed by the drug war – Ensuring access to licenses for people with marijuana records -Full funding for expungement   Call them right now. Then watch the hearings this week.https://t.co/sqSuEHYVs9

— ACLU of New Jersey (@ACLUNJ) November 9, 2020

The panel also discussed two separate bills to further decriminalize marijuana and provide a pathway for expungements for prior cannabis convictions. The Assembly approved a marijuana decriminalization bill in June.

The legalization legislation will now head to the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee and Assembly Appropriations Committee—which last year advanced a cannabis expungements bill that was later signed into law—before arriving on the floor of either chamber. Hearings are scheduled for Thursday in both panels.

Over in the Assembly Committee, members and witnesses similarly discussed the social justice components of the chamber’s companion bill, with advocates calling for tax revenue to be earmarked for disadvantaged communities and for lawmakers to allow people to grow their own marijuana at home.

Assemblywoman Annette Quijano (D), sponsor of the legislation, told activists, “I appreciate your voice on this issue and I am listening.”

"We strive to put forth legislation that will not only end cannabis prohibition but empower the communities that have been impacted the most." – @AnnetteQuijano on her bill guiding the regulation of adult use cannabis in New Jersey pic.twitter.com/sPjo1qj37d

— NJ Assembly Democrats (@njassemblydems) November 9, 2020

Chairman Joseph Danielsen (D) argued that despite the pushback from those testifying, the proposal is “one of the most creative, progressive bills in the country” and that it would “be hard for any state to do better than we have.”

On home cultivation, the chairman predicted that “New Jersey will get there at some point in the future—just not today.”

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE PASSES @AnnetteQuijano, @jamelholley, @AswTimberlake, @AswMcKnight, @DANIELSEN & @WIMBERLY BILL GUIDING REGULATION OF ADULT-USE CANNABIS IN NEW JERSEY https://t.co/uCBgBG03KH

— NJ Assembly Democrats (@njassemblydems) November 9, 2020

Gov. Phil Murphy (D), who strongly advocated for the legalization referendum, appointed Dianna Houenou, a current administration staffer and former policy counsel to the ACLU of New Jersey, to head the state’s Cannabis Regulatory Commission (CRC) on Friday. She emphasized the social justice would be a key regulatory priority.

CRC would be responsible for granting licenses to growers, processors, wholesalers, laboratory testing facilities, distributors, delivery services and retailers.

But as those are set up, the bill will let medical cannabis dispensaries sell marijuana products for the recreational market. Scutari proposed that plan last month, saying that adults could start purchasing cannabis from dispensaries within just weeks after the election. However, a top regulator pushed back on the proposal, noting that the state’s existing medical marijuana have already struggled to keep up with patient demand.

The senator addressed that issue in the legislation. His bill would allow each medical producer to open two more cultivation facilities to increase the available supply. “There’s no reason why, in the next 90 days, they can’t grow any more product and get it out on the shelves,” he told Marijuana Moment in a phone interview last week. “I mean, not saying they will, but they could—it’s not a physical impossibility.”

Also under the legislation, 15 percent of cannabis licenses would go to for minority-owned businesses, and an additional 15 percent would be given to businesses owned by women or veterans. If an applicant pledges to hire people from communities disproportionately impacted by crime or unemployment, they would get licensing priority.

Further, the bill would establish an Office of Minority, Disabled Veterans and Women Cannabis Business Development that would be tasked with promoting participation in the industry by marginalized groups.

The proposal would apply the state’s current sales tax rate of 6.6625 percent on adult-use marijuana sales, which is relatively low compared to other legal states. Individual municipalities could impose an additional two percent tax on the market. Revenue would go toward the implementation of the program, law enforcement for training purposes and the state’s general fund.

Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin (D) said on Monday that he will be pushing to add a recreational marijuana “user fee” to the legislation, saying it will “help reduce the financial burden on New Jersey’s taxpayers and specifically its urban communities.”

Now that residents have voted to #legalizemarijuana in NJ, the Legislature will be working on establishing the necessary regulatory infrastructure. Both the Assembly and Senate will hear testimony today on proposed cannabis legislation. Follow along: https://t.co/6s6HRdYUWkpic.twitter.com/5JJspnM5tg

— Speaker Craig Coughlin (@SpeakerCoughlin) November 9, 2020

Now that NJ has legalized recreational cannabis, we can grow our revenue base by imposing an additional user fee that will help reduce the financial burden on New Jersey's taxpayers and specifically its urban communities. I will work to include it in enabling legislation.

— Speaker Craig Coughlin (@SpeakerCoughlin) November 9, 2020

“The legal sale of cannabis will allow us to fairly address issues of criminal justice and provide needed revenue for our state,” Coughlin said in a statement. “The enabling legislation will ensure that this money is returned to our communities and that it is distributed fairly.”

Statement from @SpeakerCoughlin on Cannabis Enabling Legislationhttps://t.co/g0SHuG3ZeW

— NJ Assembly Democrats (@njassemblydems) November 9, 2020

Murphy wrote that he agreed with the speaker on the need to add additional marijuana taxes and thanked him for “prioritizing fairness throughout the process” of legislating on cannabis reform.

As we pursue adult-use marijuana legalization, we finally have an opportunity to raise revenue through an excise tax to invest in communities most harmed by the War on Drugs.

Thank you, @SpeakerCoughlin, for prioritizing fairness throughout this process. https://t.co/QUMXv2uqU1

— Governor Phil Murphy (@GovMurphy) November 9, 2020

But Senate President Steve Sweeney (D) joined Scutari and another senator in issuing a joint statement opposing any added taxes on cannabis sales.

“To further protect this revenue flow, we should not touch the voter-approved tax schedule,” they said. “We should not impose any additional taxes that will put the cost of legally purchasing marijuana out of reach for the communities that have been impacted the most.”

Meanwhile, as legislators work to advance the legalization enabling legislation, New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal (D) is encouraging police and prosecutors to exercise discretion around marijuana offenses in the interim.

Sweeney said that the top prosecutor should “use his legal and moral authority to issue clear guidelines to all law enforcement authorities—state, county and municipal—to stop all arrests and suspend all pending criminal cases against individuals for possession of amounts of marijuana that would be considered personal use.”

“It’s time for these arrests that have disproportionately affected people of color to stop,” he said.

It is time for the @NewJerseyOAG to use both the legal & moral authority to issue protocols to all of our NJ’s law enforcement agencies. It is time to stop the arrests & suspend all pending cases against individuals for possession of personal #cannabis.https://t.co/mBtVN9es2mpic.twitter.com/tqJ7G5bPJQ

— Steve Sweeney (@NJSenatePres) November 9, 2020

He also said in response to the Senate committee vote that the action marks “an historic step forward for New Jersey.”

The #Senate took steps to implement the public referendum legalizing adult-use marijuana as approved by the #voters. Our legislation will take the necessary actions to create a regulatory system to oversee the operations of the cannabis industry in NJ.https://t.co/bNXHTLKyjt

— Steve Sweeney (@NJSenatePres) November 9, 2020

“With the public’s approval, we will be able to move forward to correct social and legal injustices that have had a discriminatory impact on communities of color at the same time that marijuana is regulated and made safe and legal for adults,” he said. “This represents a significant change in public policy that will have a real-life impact on social justice, law enforcement and the economy.”

Assemblyman Jamel Holley (D) similarly said last week that all low-level cannabis prosecutions should be ended, stating that the vote demonstrates that “there is no patience anymore for prosecuting people caught smoking and possessing marijuana.”

This article has been updated to include additional comments and information about the Assembly committee vote.

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Photo courtesy of Brian Shamblen.