Legalization on the Horizon

There are many complications with the 13,000-line bill proposing the legalization of marijuana in Virginia, such as the fact that marijuana dispensaries couldn’t put their profits directly into a national bank, and the complication of growing laws. Add to that the complication that, although it would be legalized in Virginia, it is still illegal to sell it according to national Federal laws, meaning money made couldn’t go straight into a national bank. The growing of the plant may be a problem, because some people may have large areas they believe they should be able to grow plants in privately, but are still limited to two mature plants, while some people may not even have enough room to grow it in an apartment, even if they wanted to. One thing to note about the bill is that recently there has been more of a push than before to legalize the drug, which could be for a number of reasons, one of which is the House of Representatives’ having their elections coming up.  They may want to pass the bill before then, as a way to show their acco

mplishments in the previous term and please constituents eager for the herb’s accessibility.

Virginia state senator Monty Mason commented on the bill, saying, “I have been of mind that there is not a hurry here-that sooner rather than later is not the important part but doing it right. I would much, much rather take our time.” When asked about the motives of the governor proposing the bill, and the senate and the house’s motivation for potentially passing it, he said he believed that the Governor’s focus on social equity would be the main reason. In the past, crimes for possession of marijuana have always disproportionally affected people of color, even though there is no real correlation between race and consumption of marijuana.

The Virginia house and Senate have a democratic majority for the first time in around 20 years. Mason said that there were “20 years of pent up demand for a number of things.”   This specific bill is one of the longest ever bills proposed in Virginia. Coming back to the discussion about the timeframe of the bill, he said, “We have a limited amount of time to openly and thoroughly debate it.” He added that if they had had a greater amount of time to debate and talk about the bill methodically, it may have been better. He continued to say that there were pros and cons to the length, and while he believes it is good that it is such an extensive law, “there is without a doubt a mistake in this bill” due to its length.

Ledger staff reached out to Jenn Michelle Pedini, a front runner for many cannabis activist groups throughout Virginia, without success. These groups include Virginia NORML, VA Cannabis Group and many more. The main and overall aim for these cannabis activists’ groups is simple: legalize it. These groups have done a lot in the ways of voting for pro cannabis governors and submitting letters and forms to Gov. Ralph Northam who is fully behind the movement.

So far cannabis has been decriminalized from a possession charge to a fine of 250 dollars if caught with under an ounce of marijuana or paraphernalia. But this decriminalization only applies to adults over the age of 18.  If a minor is caught with any amount of trace of marijuana they will be charged with either a misdemeanor or felony amount of marijuana depending on the amount that was seized from said minor. That also includes paraphernalia.

Another law that these activist groups worked for including the governor was the medical legalization of marijuana. This is the most common path to legalization. The law states that if you are an adult who suffers from a range of health issues you can apply to get your medical card. It is rumored to be quite easy to receive your med card, but of course you must be an adult. Altogether, cannabis is still not fully legalized for recreational use for adults. But the way things are looking, Virginia is thought by many to be the most likely next state for full legalization of marijuana.