The U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI) is ready to change into the following jurisdiction within the nation to legalize marijuana, with a invoice awaiting imminent motion from the pro-reform governor. The sponsor desires to be clear, nevertheless, that the laws will not be meant to be an financial panacea for the territory, even when it would bolster tourism and assist straighten up the prevailing medical hashish program.
Sen. Janelle Sarauw (I) instructed Marijuana Second in a telephone interview on Tuesday that she hasn’t heard from the governor’s workplace about his intentions for her legalization invoice that the legislature delivered to his desk late final month. However she stated it might be “silly” of Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. (D) “to not signal it,” particularly given his repeated marketing campaign pledges backing the reform typically even when he differs on particular provisions.
The connection between the senator and governor because it pertains to hashish legalization has been tense, even if each help ending prohibition and making a regulated market. Bryan publicly pressured Sarauw to file her invoice because it was being finalized, and the senator has been essential of the governor’s personal earlier reform proposal.
Sarauw stated that it was crucial that the laws wasn’t rushed, as she didn’t wish to see a repeat of what she’s described as a poor rollout of the medical hashish legislation that was enacted early in Bryan’s administration. Her laws serves a twin function to that finish: legalizing marijuana for grownup use whereas substituting the medical hashish legislation.
“I mixed each of them to allow them to transfer parallel to one another,” she stated. “The foremost distinction within the leisure piece is {that a} leisure piece permits for a better element round social fairness within the territory.”
Ending prohibition is a significant reform—however not one which she desires folks to imagine will resolve the territory’s financial points. Whereas Bryan has made a lot in regards to the potential enhance in tourism that he believes legalization can produce for USVI, for instance, Sarauw desires to mood expectations, saying it can present guests with “one other layer, an amenity” to take pleasure in, however not one thing that she expects will appeal to vacationers by itself.
The governor hasn’t stated whether or not he plans to signal the invoice or not, however the legislature’s web site says that it was delivered to him on January 9. He has ten days to signal, veto or permit the laws to take impact with out his signature.
As they labored to finalize the reform measure, a delegation of USVI lawmakers, together with Sarauw, visited Colorado final 12 months to study in regards to the state’s expertise as one of many first to legalize leisure hashish.
The senator stated that she and her colleagues drew many classes from the journey that helped inform their method. They realized, as an example, the significance of building strong packaging and labeling necessities to forestall youth entry and guaranteeing that the territory has the sources to implement these laws.
She additionally stated that they heard “unequivocally” from officers that the governor’s formidable income projections for legalization have been “inflated,” and he or she desires to set the document straight that it’s going to take years of implementation earlier than USVI begins to see vital financial advantages from this system.
“There are a variety of takeaways,” she stated. “What we’ve centered on within the authorities has been the great, the great, the great [of legalization].” However, “like the rest,” there are considerations that have to be addressed—”and we undoubtedly must study from the errors of the states.”
She stated that she does count on the territory’s legalization legislation, if the governor finally enacts it, will proceed to be amended.
One distinctive a part of the method to legalize hashish within the territory considerations the function of the federal authorities. Whereas the Justice Division has typically taken a hands-off method to state-level hashish markets, USVI is way more carefully enmeshed with the federal authorities as a territory with out its personal structure, Sarauw stated.
“I’m hoping that the federal authorities doesn’t intervene, however I actually can’t say that they gained’t as a result of we have already got a really heavy federal presence now,” she stated. “That is additionally why I moved [to hold a Constitutional Convention] as a result of we do want a structure that can give us some degree of political maturity.”
The introduction of the senator’s reform laws got here months after the governor included hashish legalization income in a funds proposal that he despatched to lawmakers and indicated that he may convene a particular session to enact the coverage change.
Listed below are a number of the essential provisions of Sarauw’s legalization bill:
Adults over the age of 21 may possess as much as two ounces of marijuana, fourteen grams of hashish concentres and one ounce of hashish merchandise corresponding to edibles, ointments and tinctures.
The laws would create an Workplace of Hashish Regulation (OCR), tasked with issuing marijuana enterprise licenses, overseeing the business and setting guidelines on points like promoting, packaging and labeling.
There can be a number of license and allow varieties, together with for hashish producers, retailers, cultivators, micro-cultivators, testing laboratories and on-site consumption entities.
There can be caps on what number of licenses OCR may grant for every of the territory’s essential islands. Regulators may subject extra after January 1, 2025 in the event that they conduct a examine demonstrating that the enlargement is required to fulfill client demand.
People who use marijuana for sacramental functions may apply for their very own cultivation permits.
There can be a tax of a minimum of 18 p.c on marijuana bought from dispensaries, however that will not apply to medical hashish. The invoice additionally lays out licensing charges and requires a 50 cent per gram tax on hashish cultivators who promote marijuana to different licensees.
Income can be break up amongst applications to deal with behavioral well being, homelessness and youth recreation, in addition to administration of the hashish program and the territory’s basic fund.
There can be a track-and-trace program for hashish merchandise.
There are additionally a number of fairness parts within the legalization invoice, together with prioritized software scoring for minority, ladies and service-injured entrepreneurs.
There can be a 100 milligram THC cap on edibles, and every serving may include as much as 10 milligrams.
Moreover, there are residency necessities for marijuana enterprise possession.
There are packaging and labeling restrictions, with the invoice stipulating that labels should embrace well being warnings and be designed in a method that doesn’t enchantment to folks underneath 21.
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The legislature individually permitted complementary expungements legislation final month. It was amended forward of passage and now supplies for computerized reduction from the courts for folks with prior convictions involving as much as two ounces of marijuana. As launched, the laws would have required folks to petition the courts.
Bryan, who has additionally talked about marijuana as a safer various to opioids for ache therapy, burdened in Could that it’s “been three years now transferring” the difficulty, and so lawmakers have to “get it via the legislature so we will get some cash going.”
He signed a medical hashish legalization invoice into legislation in 2019.
There was a listening to on the governor’s adult-use legalization proposal in 2020, with a number of authorities businesses testifying in favor of the reform and outlining how a regulated hashish market may assist the territory, particularly given its financial wants.
Bryan has additionally emphasised the necessity to legalize, tax and regulate hashish to generate income amid the financial downturn brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.
If the governor indicators the legalization invoice, USVI wouldn’t be the primary U.S. territory to enact the reform.
The governor of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) signed a invoice to finish prohibition in 2018. The next 12 months, the governor of Guam signed legalization into legislation.
Photograph courtesy of Brian Shamblen.