The New Hampshire House of Representatives has permitted payments to legalize marijuana, decriminalize the use and possession of psilocybin by adults and double the quantity of medical hashish that state-registered sufferers should purchase and possess.
Members on Wednesday morning voted in favor of HB 198, from Rep. Jared Sullivan (D), which might allow adults 21 and older to possess up to two ounces of marijuana flower, 10 grams of focus and as much as 2,000 milligrams of THC in different hashish merchandise.
Retail gross sales of marijuana merchandise, together with house cultivation, would stay unlawful. Consuming marijuana on public land would even be prohibited.
The laws cleared the chamber in a vote of 208-125.
“It is 2025. Let’s stop arresting people and ruining their lives for possession of cannabis, something that many states in the country have already legalized,” Sullivan stated forward of the vote.
He famous that there appears to be a consensus that hashish needs to be authorized, at the same time as there may be lingering disagreement on easy methods to regulate a marketplace for gross sales.
“Once we get it legal, we can continue to have that debate that seems to be where the sticking points is do we want it to be a private industry-based model do we want to be a state-run model,” he stated. “These things are where we’re getting kind of caught up in the weeds and it seems like most people agree that we should legalize it.”
The House on Wednesday additionally handed HB 528, from Rep. Kevin Verville (R), which in its present kind would reduce the state’s penalties round psilocybin.
Under the plan, a primary psilocybin offense can be a violation, topic to a wonderful of $100 or much less.
Second and third psilocybin offenses, in the meantime, can be class B misdemeanors, carrying fines of as much as $500 and $1,000, respectively, however with no danger of jail time. Fourth and subsequent offenses would stay categorized as felonies.
Sales and distribution of the substance would nonetheless be unlawful, because the reform would apply solely to “a person 18 years of age or older who obtains, purchases, transports, possesses, or uses psilocybin.”
As initially launched, the laws would have utterly eliminated penalties round acquiring, buying, transporting, possessing or utilizing psilocybin, successfully legalizing it on a noncommercial foundation. However a House committee amended the bill before unanimously advancing it earlier this month.
Verville informed Marijuana Moment that the House’s passage of his psilocybin bill is “an historic, albeit small first step on our journey to correct 60 years of demonstrably failed policy on psychedelics.”
“This bipartisan, common sense legislation will end the decades long terror of becoming a felon for possession of mushrooms that grow naturally in New Hampshire, North America, and across the globe,” he stated. “Our fight is far from over. Our attention will now turn to the NH Senate, in hopes of having them concur with the position of the House, and then beseech our governor to allow the bill to pass into law.”
House lawmakers on Wednesday additionally permitted HB 190, from Rep. Heath Howard (D), which might enhance the possession restrict of medical marijuana by sufferers and caregivers, elevating it to 4 ounces from the present two. Existing 10-day affected person buy limits would additionally enhance from two ounces as much as 4.
The psilocybin and medical hashish growth payments had been handed as a part of the chamber’s consent calendar with out ground debate and weren’t given roll name votes. All three House-passed reform payments now proceed to the Senate for consideration.
Another cannabis-related proposal, in the meantime, is about for motion within the House this week: HB 380, from Rep. Suzanne Vail (D)—to regulate penalties round gross sales of medical hashish to people who find themselves not qualifying sufferers or caregivers.
Earlier this week, a Senate committee took testimony on four other House-passed bills related to cannabis, amongst them plans round medical homegrow, annulment of previous convictions, adult-use legalization and permitting present dispensaries purchase industrial hemp cannabinoids.
It’s extensively believed that New Hampshire Gov. Kelly Ayotte (R) would stand in the way in which of any adult-use legalization invoice that had been to make it to her desk this session, nevertheless. A former U.S. senator and state lawyer normal, Ayotte said repeatedly on the campaign trail last year that she would oppose efforts at adult-use legalization.
New Hampshire lawmakers practically handed laws final session that will have legalized and controlled marijuana for adults—a proposal that then-Gov. Chris Sununu (R) had indicated he’d help. But infighting over how the market can be arrange finally scuttled that proposal. House Democrats narrowly voted to table it at the last minute, taking problem with the proposal’s state-controlled franchise mannequin, which might have given the state unprecedented sway over retail shops and shopper costs.
A ballot from final June discovered that almost two thirds (65 percent) of New Hampshire residents supported legalizing marijuana. Nearly that very same share of residents (61 p.c) stated on the time that additionally they supported final session’s failed legalization invoice, HB 1633.
Image aspect courtesy of Kristie Gianopulos.
Marijuana Moment is made potential with help from readers. If you depend on our hashish advocacy journalism to remain knowledgeable, please think about a month-to-month Patreon pledge.
