Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D) sent the state’s recently passed bill to legalize adult-use cannabis sales back to lawmakers with proposed amendments on Monday.
The governor is asking lawmakers to delay the market’s launch by six months, until July 1, 2027.
Chelsea Higgs Wise, executive director for the cannabis advocacy group Marijuana Justice, told the Virginia Scope that lawmakers’ proposed January 1 start date would disadvantage smaller operators.
“On Jan. 1, the only people that will be ready are the operators that are able to convert and they are all out-of-state operators and large corporations. They get many benefits that Virginia independent businesses do not.” — Higgs Wise, via Virginia Scope
As passed, the bill would see retail cannabis sales taxed at 6%, while municipalities would have the ability to add between 1% and 3.5% in additional local taxes. The bill proposes allowing 350 licensed cannabis retailers in the state. The Virginia Cannabis Control Authority (CCA) would handle cannabis industry licensing and regulations, while the Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority (ABC) would handle enforcement duties. The bill also calls for merging the CCA into the ABC by 2028.
Additionally, the bill increases the cannabis possession limit for adults from 1 ounce to 2.5 ounces.
Virginia legalized adult-use cannabis possession and home cultivation in 2021. However, when lawmakers attempted to follow up with subsequent legislation to legalize and regulate the retail cannabis market, former Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) repeatedly vetoed the issue.
Gov. Spanberger said during her election campaign last year that she would sign legislation to legalize adult-use cannabis sales if it were to come across her desk as governor.
