Rhode Island Governor Dan McKee has signed into law the Rhode Island Cannabis Act, legalizing and safely regulating recreational adult-use cannabis in the state. The Act automatically expunges prior civil or criminal marijuana possession charges, a key provision in Governor McKee's original cannabis proposal to the General Assembly. The press release can be found here.
Under the new law, possession and home cultivation of cannabis is now legal for adults 21 and older, while in-store sales may begin as soon as December 1, 2022. The law strongly emphasizes public health and public safety while establishing a framework for common-sense adult-use cannabis regulation. Adults may legally possess up to 1 ounce of cannabis, with no more than 10 ounces for personal use kept at a person's home. It will also allow residents to grow a small amount of cannabis at home.
The legislation calls for a 20 percent tax rate, including a 7 percent sales tax, a new 10 percent cannabis tax, and a 3 percent municipality tax for the location where the cannabis is sold. The new law makes investments in creating an equitable, accessible cannabis retail market by setting aside application fee revenues and reserving a portion of new licenses for social equity applicants and worker-owned cooperatives.
Rhode Island is the 19th state to legalize cannabis, including Massachusetts and Connecticut. The new law will give courts until July 1, 2024 to automatically expunge past convictions. Individuals who would like their record expunged sooner may request it.
Alternately, in what is being called a major break from his party, Delaware Governor John Carney has vetoed a bill that would have removed all penalties for possessing small quantities of recreational marijuana, citing long-standing concerns about the health and public safety impacts of marijuana use and sales.
In a statement, Governor Carney noted that he recognizes the positive medicinal affect that marijuana can have for people with certain health conditions, so he remains supportive of the medical marijuana industry in Delaware. He also stated that he supported decriminalization of marijuana because he believes that individuals should not be imprisoned solely for the possession and private use of a small amount of marijuana, which is no longer an issue due to Delaware's decriminalization law. However, he emphasized that he does not believe that promoting or expanding the use of recreational marijuana is in the best interests of the state of Delaware, particularly for young people in the state.