possess up to one ounce of cannabis, five grams of concentrates, and cannabis-infused products containing no more than 500 milligrams of THC;
cultivate up to four cannabis plants in a secure location that is not visible from outside of the property and that is not accessible to minors; and
possess cannabis produced from those plants in the same secure location where the cannabis was cultivated.
State Regulation and Licensing
A new Cannabis Regulation Division in the Office of the Comptroller would be charged with licensing and regulating at least six types of adult-use cannabis businesses: retail stores (which could deliver cannabis and have on-site consumption establishments), cultivation facilities, product manufacturers, transporters, and independent laboratories. Regulators could also create additional types of licenses.
The Cannabis Regulation Division would be required to issue at least 15% of the licenses to microbusinesses, which would have limits on the applicant’s income and the ability to transfer such licenses.
The Cannabis Regulation Division would develop comprehensive rules, including: governing security, laboratory testing, packaging, labeling, recordkeeping, and inspections; prohibiting dangerous pesticides and additives; and restricting advertising. Products and labeling could not include features designed to appeal to minors, such as cartoons or animals.
A disparity study would be conducted prior to the issuance of regulations, and any measures justified by that study could be included in the licensing process.
After determining whether applicants meet basic qualifications, the department would conduct a lottery to determine who receives licenses.
Local Control
Municipalities and — in reference to unincorporated areas — counties could enact regulations, limit the number of cannabis establishments, or ban them altogether. They could not ban deliveries from businesses licensed elsewhere.
Taxation and Fees
Cannabis would be subject to an excise tax of $50 per ounce for flowers, $15 per ounce for other parts of cannabis, and $25 per immature plant. This tax would be imposed on sales from a cultivator. The standard 6% sales tax would apply.
Non-refundable application fees of up to $5,000 would be imposed on cannabis establishments, with the amount adjusted for inflation.
After paying for the costs of administration, revenue allocations would include:
10% to science-based treatment and prevention for substance abuse;
10% to address impaired driving, including public education and training of law enforcement to recognize impaired driving;
20% to supporting communities and individuals that have been harmed by marijuana prohibition, including funding for re-entry programs, workforce development, and the Affordable Housing Trust, with a focus on communities that have had above average marijuana arrest rates; and
60% to the Education Trust Fund.
Employers and Private Property
Landlords could prohibit the growing or smoking of cannabis at their rentals. They could not prohibit possession or non-smoked consumption by tenants.
Other property owners may prohibit the consumption and display of cannabis.
Employers would not have to accommodate employees who are under the influence or the possession of cannabis at work.
Expungement, Penalty Reduction, and Resentencing
The penalty for first offense possession of no more than double the possession limit would be reduced to a civil offense.
Anyone with a cannabis conviction, including for sales, could petition for expungement or resentencing, and the court would consider the interests of justice — including that cannabis became legal for adults’ use.
Convictions for cannabis possession and cultivation would be automatically expunged, after allowing courts time to do so, and funding would be provided from the tax revenue.
Refraining from cannabis use would no longer be a condition of parole and probation unless the court or parole board had a reason for requiring it in a specific case.
Prohibited Conduct and Penalties
Smoking cannabis in public would continue to carry a civil fine of up to $500. Vaping in public would be a civil offense with a fine of up to $100.
Consuming cannabis while driving, or smoking cannabis in a moving vehicle, would be a violation punishable by a fine of up to $1,000, up to 90 days in jail, and/or suspension of one’s driver’s license for up to six months for a first offense (regardless of whether there is proof of impairment).
Growing cannabis in a location that is not secure or in an area open to the public would be punishable by a fine of up to $750 or up to 50 hours of community service.
Using a fake ID or otherwise falsely misrepresenting one’s age in order to obtain cannabis would be punishable by a fine of up to $150 or up to 10 hours of community service.
The department could suspend or revoke the registration of a cannabis establishment for multiple or serious violations.
