New Hampshire Governor Reiterates Opposition To Marijuana Legalization, But May Consider Allowing Medical Homegrow

As bills to legalize marijuana for adults in New Hampshire makes their way through the legislature, Gov. Kelly Ayotte (R) is reiterating her opposition to the reform—but is also signaling that she may be open to separate legislation that would allow medical cannabis patients to grow their own medicine at home.

“I’ve been very clear on this,” Ayotte told reporters last Wednesday, the same day House lawmakers passed HB 198, which would legalize the use and possession of marijuana by adults 21 and older. “I ran on this issue, and the people of New Hampshire know where I stand on it. I don’t support it.”

A former U.S. senator and state attorney general, Ayotte said repeatedly on the campaign trail last year that she would oppose efforts at adult-use legalization.

HB 198 would, if enacted, allow adults 21 and older to possess up to two ounces of marijuana flower, 10 grams of concentrate and up to 2,000 milligrams of THC in other cannabis products. Retail sales of marijuana products, along with home cultivation, would remain illegal. Consuming marijuana on public land would also be prohibited.

The proposal, from Rep. Jared Sullivan (D), cleared the chamber last week in a 208–125 vote.

Ayotte said there were a number of reasons she’s against the change, according to a report from the outlet InDepthNH.

“I don’t think it is the right direction for the state for a lot of reasons,” she told reporters. “I believe, if you think about our quality of life, if you think about some of the concerns that can flow from that. I know…we talked about safety on our roadways. I think that there are a number of issues that states who have legalized cannabis have experienced in those regards that I just don’t think can be addressed at the moment with the existing technology.”

The governor of the Granite State also added that she’s “mindful of the message we send to younger people when we legalize something versus it being illegal.”

Despite Ayotte’s comments flatly opposing legalization, however, she left the door open to more modest cannabis reform. She told reporters she will review every bill that comes to her desk, including a separate House-passed measure that would legalize home cultivation by state-registered medical marijuana patients.

That bill—HB 53, from Rep. Wendy Thomas (D), would allow cultivation of up to three mature plants and three immature plants, as well as 12 seedlings. Patients could also possess up to eight ounces of usable cannabis from those plants.

Growing would need to occur in a secure location, away from public view or unauthorized access, and would need to be reported to the state. Landlords could further prohibit cultivation in rented properties.

Other bills passed by New Hampshire House lawmakers last Wednesday would reduce penalties for the use and possession of psilocybin by adults and double the amount of medical cannabis that state-registered patients can purchase and possess.

Under the psilocybin plan—HB 528, from Rep. Kevin Verville (R)—a first psilocybin offense for possession or use would be a violation, subject to a fine of $100 or less.

Second and third psilocybin offenses, meanwhile, would be class B misdemeanors, carrying fines of up to $500 and $1,000, respectively, but with no risk of jail time. Fourth and subsequent offenses would remain classified as felonies.

Sales and distribution of the substance would still be illegal, as the reform would apply only to “a person 18 years of age or older who obtains, purchases, transports, possesses, or uses psilocybin.”

As originally introduced, the legislation would have completely removed penalties around obtaining, purchasing, transporting, possessing or using psilocybin, effectively legalizing it on a noncommercial basis. However a House committee amended the bill before unanimously advancing it earlier this month.

Earlier last week, meanwhile, a Senate committee took testimony on four other House-passed bills related to cannabis, including the medical homegrow bill, a separate adult-use legalization measure, annulment of past cannabis convictions and allowing existing dispensaries buy commercial hemp cannabinoids.

The hemp cannabinoid bill would allow New Hampshire’s existing medical marijuana dispensaries—known in the state as alternative treatment centers (ATCs)—to buy nonintoxicating cannabinoid products from commercial producers and, after lab testing, use them in products sold to state-registered patients.

The bill would not apply to hemp-derived THC but only to non-intoxicating cannabinoids. Examples given were cannabidiol (CBD) and cannabigerol (CBG).

As for the other marijuana legalization bill that is advancing this session—HB 75, from Rep. Verville—it would remove state penalties around cannabis-related conduct for adults 21 and older. Unlike legalization measures in other states, however, it would not establish a licensed commercial market or a broader regulatory scheme.

Verville’s proposal includes no limits on marijuana possession or cultivation. And despite its lack of a regulatory structure for a commercial industry, it would carve out marijuana from the state’s laws against illicit drug sales.

People under 21 would be guilty of a violation if found possessing or using the substance, and anyone under 18 would be referred to a screening for substance use disorders. Adults who use marijuana in a public place would also be guilty of a violation.

New Hampshire lawmakers nearly passed legislation last session that would have legalized and regulated marijuana for adults—a proposal that then-Gov. Chris Sununu (R) had indicated he’d support. But infighting over how the market would be set up ultimately scuttled that proposal. House Democrats narrowly voted to table it at the last minute, taking issue with the proposal’s state-controlled franchise model, which would have given the state unprecedented sway over retail stores and consumer prices.

A poll from last June found that almost two thirds (65 percent) of New Hampshire residents supported legalizing marijuana. Nearly that same share of residents (61 percent) said at the time that they also supported last session’s failed legalization bill, HB 1633.

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Photo courtesy of Philip Steffan.