Liebling was quick to clarify that the provision that caused the confusion would not really legalize weed in the state. “That`s what we`re going to do next,” she joked. Consumers seem excited about the new market for edibles and intoxicating beverages, and reversing the change would prove highly unpopular given the strong support for marijuana legalization in Minnesota and nationwide. A September poll by MPR News, The Star Tribune and KARE11 found that a slim majority of Minnesotans support legalizing recreational marijuana. And DFL Gov. Tim Walz, who is running for re-election, has said he supports legalization. State and industry officials admit that few major problems have arisen since the beginning of the legalization experiment. However, public health experts are concerned that the new adult-to-regulate market will do little to reduce the risk of unsafe products being ingested by ignorant consumers. And lawmakers face calls from across the ideological spectrum to provide legal clarity on the cannabis program when they return to Capitol Hill next year. Hemp growers in particular are happy to have a new market for their crops.
The state has seen a boon among farmers who grow the plant since it was legalized in 2015, but many are struggling to find buyers in an oversaturated market. WDIO`s DFL-ers reintroduce cannabis legalization law Although Minnesota`s cannabis laws are not as strict as those in some states, they lag behind public opinion. Voters want cannabis to be legal for adults. “They have effectively legalized a very different regulatory approach to hemp than in any other state,” said Gillian Schauer, executive director of the Cannabis Regulators Association. “It was a boom,” Kelly Moritz, chief operating officer of Indeed Brewing Company, said one afternoon in their Minneapolis tasting room as John Prine — perhaps best known for the stoner anthem “Illegal Smile” — played in the background. House Majority Leader Ryan Winkler, a Democrat who has lobbied for marijuana legalization, said Abeler and other GOP lawmakers should have been fully aware of the implications of the hemp provision. As of May 2022, the District of Columbia and 19 states – Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Washington – have legalized cannabis for specific recreational purposes. (South Dakota approved a measure to legalize recreational marijuana in 2020; the South Dakota Supreme Court declared the measure unconstitutional in November 2021.) In 2012, Colorado and Washington became the first states to legalize recreational cannabis. Most states that have legalized recreational marijuana have done so through an election initiative. In 2018, Vermont became the first state to legalize cannabis through the legislative process.
Regulations vary from state to state, with some states like Washington and Colorado taxing marijuana and setting up retail environments, and other states like Vermont simply allowing residents to grow and possess marijuana in certain amounts, but not sell it. The legalization of marijuana has been a controversial issue in the Minnesota legislature for years. The Democratic-controlled House of Representatives passed a bill last year that would allow anyone 21 or older to legally purchase and possess the drug, but the GOP-controlled Senate has strongly opposed legalizing recreational activities. Nevertheless, a legalization provision was passed without debate or objection at a marathon meeting of the conference committee in May. 8. In March 2019, Republicans in the Minnesota Senate voted against a measure to legalize recreational cannabis use. Republicans also decided not to set up a task force to further investigate the matter. Sen. Melisa Franzen (D-Edina), who supported the measure, said, “We don`t have a bill, so I think the debate in the Senate is over,” noting that Gov. Tim Walz might convene his own task force, but isn`t. Several proposals are still before the House of Representatives, including the creation of a task force similar to what Franzen proposed, and a constitutional amendment to let voters decide the fate of legalizing, taxing and regulating recreational cannabis use.
[14] [15] MINNEAPOLIS – There is no legal cannabis market in the country like the one that originated in Minnesota. Kevin Sabet, CEO of the anti-legalization group Smart Approaches to Marijuana, called it an “embarrassing mistake” for Minnesota. Minnesota legalized medical cannabis in 2014, becoming the 22nd state to grant some level of access to the drug for medical purposes (Laws of Minnesota 2014, c. 311 (SF2470)). The law created the Medical Cannabis Medical Cannabis Medical Research Task Force to conduct assessments to assess the effects of medical cannabis use and to evaluate activities in Minnesota and other states related to medical cannabis. And what has developed so far is a particular experiment in quasi-legalization – one that has led cities and counties to put safeguards around the fledgling industry and raised public health and safety concerns. Winkler, the majority leader in the House of Representatives, did not seek re-election. But he is drafting a new version of a law to legalize recreational activities that passed the House in 2021, even though the measure has gone nowhere in the Republican-controlled Senate. Marijuana was largely unregulated in the United States until Congress passed the Marihuana Tax Act of 1937 (P.L.
75-238), which unofficially banned marijuana through strict regulations on all sales. Shortly after this legislation was passed, all states made it illegal to possess marijuana (e.g., Minnesota Laws 1939, c. 405). When the Controlled Substance Act was passed by the U.S. Congress in 1970 (P.L. 91-513), marijuana was classified as a Schedule I drug, the most restrictive of the five schedules, and that classification has remained to this day. Since then, annual attempts have been made at the federal level to downgrade or eliminate marijuana altogether. While the law applied to certain types of marijuana use, Minnesota`s “legal consumer products” law contains important exceptions. For example, the law states that an employer may restrict the use of lawful consumables by employees outside of working hours if the employer`s restriction “relates to a bona fide occupational requirement and is reasonably related to the employment activities or responsibilities of a particular employee or group of workers” or “is necessary to create a conflict of interest or the appearance: avoid a conflict of interest with the employee`s responsibilities to the employee. Employers. The scope of these exceptions is largely not considered by the courts, so an employer should consult with an experienced lawyer if it plans to rely on one of them. Cannabis in Minnesota has been legal for medical purposes since 2014.
Starting July 1, 2022, foods and beverages containing THC will be legal in Minnesota if the THC is derived from hemp and is limited to 5 mg of THC per serving. [1] Non-medical recreational cannabis use remains illegal in Minnesota. FOX9 Minnesota House Democrats push for marijuana legalization — again “At first, I was a little skeptical,” Dawson said of the new law legalizing hemp products. “I expected it to be much less beneficial for us. So I was pleasantly surprised that there was progress. This year is an election year for the entire Minnesota legislature and the governor. Ask your House and Senate nominees if they support the legalization of cannabis for adults. Primary Day is August 9. In August 2019, Governor Tim Walz announced that he had asked state authorities to prepare to implement policies related to the legalization of cannabis.