Virginia Democrats are as soon as once more teeing up a invoice to legalize adult-use hashish gross sales that Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin has little interest in signing.
The Virginia Senate voted, 21-19, solely alongside celebration strains to move Senate Invoice 970 on Jan. 31. Backed via Sen. Aaron Rouse, D-Virginia Seaside, the law targets to determine a framework for authorized and controlled adult-use dispensaries, permitting the ones 21 years and older within the commonwealth to buy as much as 2.5 oz of hashish.
Below S.B. 970, the Virginia Hashish Regulate Authority (CCA) may start issuing adult-use licenses via Sept. 1, 2025, thru a structured software procedure for retail, cultivation, production, transportation and laboratory companies. Alternatively, the invoice supplies that no retail gross sales would possibly happen sooner than Might 1, 2026.
“This invoice prioritizes public protection and making a well-regulated market that helps to keep grownup merchandise out of the palms of youngsters,” Rouse mentioned Jan. 31 at the Senate flooring. “The security and safety of all Virginians is a most sensible precedence of this law. And in recent times, we’ve observed the unchecked proliferation of unlawful and unregulated marijuana shops that experience put Virginians in peril as unlicensed drug sellers promote billions of greenbacks of untested and untaxed merchandise, and incessantly to kids.”
The Senate’s passage got here as Space Invoice 2485, spouse law subsidized via Del. Paul Krizek, D-Fairfax, works its approach throughout the decrease chamber, the place Democrats additionally cling a slender majority, 51-49.
The push to create an authorized and controlled market comes greater than 3 1/2 years since a ownership and residential develop invoice signed via former Democratic Rep. Ralph Northam went into impact, permitting Virginians 21 and older to own as much as 1 ounce of hashish and domesticate as much as 4 crops of their personal flats.
Alternatively, the ones within the commonwealth have nowhere to legally acquire adult-use hashish that’s been examined for mildew, insecticides, heavy metals and different contaminants until they shuttle to some other state that has extra permissive hashish rules, reminiscent of bordering Maryland.
“A well-regulated marijuana retail marketplace is a need for public protection and can be sure that merchandise are examined for protection, as it should be categorised, bought in a managed setting, and refrained from children,” Rouse mentioned. “This invoice calls for seed-to-sale monitoring, detailed trying out necessities, and protected transportation protocols to take care of safety at each stage.”
As well as, the CCA could be tasked with putting in a degree taking part in box to verify the geographic range of adult-use licenses underneath the law.
The law requires as much as an 11.625% tax on business hashish gross sales that may be constructed from an 8% state hashish tax, a 2.5% native tax choice and a 1.125% state sales-and-use tax.
After accounting for the CCA’s bills of working a regulated hashish program, the online income from tax revenues accumulated could be appropriated as follows:
- 60% to a Hashish Fairness Reinvestment Fund;
- 25% to the Division of Behavioral Well being and Construction Products and services for substance-use dysfunction prevention and remedy techniques;
- 10% to pre-kindergarten techniques for at-risk 3- and 4-year-olds; and
- 5% to public well being techniques aimed at fighting drugged riding and underage intake.
The 2025 law comes after Democratic lawmakers handed identical law final yr—solely alongside celebration strains in each chambers—most effective to be defeated via Youngkin’s veto. In his 2024 2024 message, Youngkin mentioned he was once frightened that legalizing adult-use gross sales would endanger Virginia’s public well being and protection.
Even supposing Youngkin’s prohibition stance hasn’t modified and his veto risk stays, Krizek mentioned previous this yr that Democrats don’t intend to present the governor a “unfastened move” at the “vital” public coverage factor.
Throughout Friday’s flooring consultation, Sen. Adam Ebbin, D-Alexandria, identified a couple of variations between the 2025 and 2024 renditions of the law. In particular, final yr’s invoice referred to as for 40% of the tax earnings from adult-use gross sales to move towards investment pre-kindergarten techniques.
Particularly, Ebbin and Sen. Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, subsidized the 2021 legalization invoice that Northam signed. That invoice additionally meant to create a business market for gross sales; then again, it incorporated a reenactment clause for sure provisions. The issue was once that Democrats misplaced their trifecta within the November 2021 election, and the gross sales provision was once by no means reenacted.
Ebbin mentioned final week that the 2025 law’s tax earnings distribution ratios veer from the unique intent of the 2021 regulation.
“I simply wish to say we’ve got a sturdy want—we’ve got a large number of children at the waitlist for pre-Ok,” he mentioned. “That is going to be some time sooner than this invoice in any case makes it throughout the procedure. However I’d hope that no matter’s in any case followed—whether or not it’s a convention record, or if it doesn’t make it thru this yr—that we don’t tinker with that system, as a result of we’ve got a robust want for pre-Ok, and it advantages a large number of children in at-risk communities.”
Below S.B. 970, the pre-Ok earnings share is minimize via 30%, whilst the state’s Hashish Fairness Reinvestment Fund is larger via 30%. The Hashish Fairness Reinvestment Fund would fortify folks and communities traditionally and disproportionately focused via drug enforcement; supply scholarship and different tutorial alternatives; award grants to fortify staff building; and give a contribution to different equity-focused techniques.
Additionally underneath S.B. 970, no county, town or the town corridor could be allowed to undertake a neighborhood ordinance or answer that prohibits authorized hashish operations solely with out placing a poll query sooner than its citizens. The governing frame of a locality must, via answer, petition its circuit court docket for a referendum at the query.
Alternatively, native governments may keep an eye on zoning and land-use necessities for hashish companies in addition to atmosphere hours for when dispensaries may promote hashish merchandise, in step with the invoice. Municipalities would even have native regulate to ban hashish use in public puts, reminiscent of parks, playgrounds and sidewalks.
Cultivation licenses because it pertains to cover buildings would come with 5 tiers with limits of two,000, 10,000, 25,000, 45,000 and 70,000 sq. toes, in step with the law. The CCA may factor as much as 50 licenses for each and every of the primary two tiers (2,000 and 10,000 sq. toes), as much as 10 licenses for the 3rd tier, as much as 5 licenses for the fourth tier and as much as 10 licenses for the 5th tier. Outside cultivation could be restricted to the primary two licensing tiers, whilst indoor cultivation could be allowed for all 5.
The state’s 5 current scientific hashish operators, referred to as pharmaceutical processors in Virginia, may open 5 adult-use dispensaries which can be co-located with their present scientific hashish retail amenities, in step with the invoice.
