As top Connecticut lawmakers work to wrap up negotiations for an expedited vote on a marijuana legalization bill with the end of the session looming, progressive Democrats are tempering expectations about the timeline and insisting that any finalized proposal must comprehensively address social equity.<\/p>\n
House Majority Leader Jason Rojas (D) said on Tuesday that leadership hopes to finalize the legislation by Tuesday, with a vote in the Senate possible \u201clater this week.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gov. Ned Lamont\u2019s (D) office and lawmakers have been frequently meeting to negotiate the details of the reform proposal. But time is running short, with the end of the session coming on June 9, and neither the governor nor leadership are particularly interested in coming back to tackle the issue in a special session.<\/p>\n
If progressives are going to get on board, however, extra time may be needed. An initial caucusing of members late last week resulted in pushback, as lawmakers said they did not want to sign on to legalization in concept without seeing actual legislative text to ensure that it effectively addresses the harms of the drug war.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe really have to see some of the sticking points around the equity, around expungement, around members of the community that have been impacted by this war on drugs, having access to seed-to-sale economic opportunity and also home grow,\u201d Rep. Anne Hughes (D), cochair of the Progressive Caucus, told Marijuana Moment in a phone interview on Tuesday. \u201cWe either end prohibition on cannabis or we don\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI keep saying, I think the governor\u2019s team is all about how much racism do we get to keep in this scenario?\u201d she said, referencing policies that her caucus feel do not adequately address the harms of the drug war. \u201cIt\u2019s like, no, we want to do it right.\u201d<\/p>\n
Last week, the legislature\u2019s joint Appropriations Committee approved a legalization bill backed by Lamont<\/a>\u2014the second panel to advance it since its introduction. The action action sets up the bill for floor action, though the plan is to amend it there to reflect whatever deal negotiators ultimately arrive at.<\/p>\n Rojas said on Tuesday that \u201cwe\u2019re looking to finalize, wrap up language on the remaining items that are there\u201d by the day\u2019s end.<\/p>\n \u201cI was in contact with individuals over the weekend just trying to address any individual concerns that a member might have,\u201d Rojas said. \u201cIn speaking with members, there\u2019s a lot of maybes about whether they\u2019re gonna vote yes or no on it\u2014and we can\u2019t really get that answer until we get the final language and are able to present to them a complete package of what a regulated, adult-use cannabis system would look like in a state of Connecticut.\u201d<\/p>\n Watch legislative leaders talk about the state of marijuana legalization negotiations, starting around 9:50 into the video below:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n Hughes told Marijuana Moment that \u201cthe governor wants it bad, and we want it right.\u201d<\/p>\n Adding to the challenge is the fact that lawmakers are still working to tackle a number of other policy priorities, including those concerning health care and unemployment benefits that have been held over due to the coronavirus pandemic.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s a big backlog of really important, critical stuff,\u201d she said. \u201cThis is important, but it\u2019s important we get it right.\u201d<\/p>\n Asked for his latest thinking on the prospects of legalization passing before the end of the session next week, House Speaker Matt Ritter (D) seemed less optimistic on Tuesday than he has in recent briefings, stressing that the legislature still needs to deal with the budget.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know. You can\u2019t get them all right, but we\u2019re working through it. The majority leader is working hard, and I don\u2019t really know,\u201d he said. \u201cThe one thing the legislature does is the budget, and so until you get this wrapped up, it just puts a hold on so many other bills and so many other topics.\u201d<\/p>\n Ritter said last week that he feels there\u2019s a 57-43 chance that the legislation is approved<\/a>, whereas he previously gave it a 50-50 chance<\/a>. But it\u2019s uncertain whether he feels those odds have changed given the time restraints and pushback from Democratic members.<\/p>\n Negotiations with the governor\u2019s office have largely centered on social equity of late, and Rojas said the policy is about \u201censuring that entrance of the marketplace is able to be accessed by communities and individuals who live in the communities who have been most impacted by the war on drugs.\u201d<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the governor said recently that he and legislative leaders are having \u201cgood, strong negotiations,\u201d and there\u2019s \u201cbroad agreement\u201d on policies concerning public health and safety. There\u2019s \u201cgrowing agreement\u201d with respect to using marijuana tax revenue to reinvest in communities disproportionately harmed by prohibition.<\/p>\n If a legalization measure isn\u2019t enacted this year, Lamont said last month that the issue could ultimately go before voters.<\/p>\n \u201cMarijuana is sort of interesting to me. When it goes to a vote of the people through some sort of a referendum, it passes overwhelmingly. When it goes through a legislature and a lot of telephone calls are made, it\u2019s slim or doesn\u2019t pass,\u201d the governor said. \u201cWe\u2019re trying to do it through the legislature. Folks are elected to make a decision, and we\u2019ll see where it goes. If it doesn\u2019t, we\u2019ll probably end up in a referendum.\u201d<\/p>\n Ritter similarly said last year that if the legislature isn\u2019t able to pass a legalization bill, he will move to put\u00a0a question on the state\u2019s 2022 ballot that would leave the matter to voters<\/a>.<\/p>\n According to recent polling, if legalization did go before voters, it would pass.<\/p>\n Sixty-four percent of residents in the state favor legalizing cannabis for adult use, a survey from Sacred Heart University that was released last week found.<\/p>\n A competing legalization measure from Rep. Robyn Porter (D), which is favored by many legalization advocates for its focus on social equity, was\u00a0approved in the Labor and Public Employees Committee<\/a>\u00a0in March.<\/p>\n Lamont, who convened an informal work group in recent months to\u00a0make recommendations on the policy change<\/a>, initially described his legalization plan as a \u201ccomprehensive framework for the cultivation, manufacture, sale, possession, use, and taxation of cannabis that prioritizes public health, public safety, and social justice.\u201d<\/p>\n But while advocates have strongly criticized the governor\u2019s plan as inadequate when it comes to equity provisions, Ritter said in March that\u00a0\u201coptimism abounds\u201d as lawmakers work to merge proposals<\/a>\u00a0into a final legalization bill.<\/p>\n Rojas also said that \u201cin principle, equity is important to both the administration and the legislature, and we\u2019re going to work through those details.\u201d<\/p>\n To that end, the majority leader said that working groups have been formed in the Democratic caucuses of the legislature to go through the governor\u2019s proposal and the committee-approved reform bill.<\/p>\n In February, a Lamont administration official stressed during a hearing in the House Judiciary Committee that Lamont\u2019s proposal it is \u201cnot a final bill,\u201d and\u00a0they want activists \u201cat the table\u201d<\/a>\u00a0to further inform the legislation.<\/p>\n The legislature has considered legalization proposals on several occasions in recent years, including a bill that Democrats\u00a0introduced last year on the governor\u2019s behalf<\/a>. Those bills stalled, however.<\/p>\n Lamont\u00a0reiterated his support for legalizing marijuana<\/a>\u00a0during his annual State of the State address in January, stating that he would be working with the legislature to advance the reform this session.<\/p>\n The governor has compared the\u00a0need for regional coordination on marijuana policy<\/a>\u00a0to the coronavirus response, stating that officials have \u201cgot to think regionally when it comes to how we deal with the pandemic\u2014and I think we have to think regionally when it comes to marijuana, as well.\u201d<\/p>\n He also said that legalization in Connecticut could\u00a0potentially reduce the spread of COVID-19<\/a>\u00a0by limiting out-of-state trips to purchase legal cannabis in neighboring states such as Massachusetts and New Jersey.<\/p>\n Nevada Bill To Legalize Marijuana Consumption Lounges Heads To Governor\u2019s Desk<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n Photo courtesy of Mike Latimer.<\/em><\/p>\n The post Connecticut Marijuana Legalization Deal In Question Following Progressive Pushback As Session\u2019s End Nears<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n
As top Connecticut lawmakers work to wrap up negotiations for an expedited vote on a marijuana legalization bill with the end of the session looming, progressive Democrats are tempering expectations about the timeline and insisting that any finalized proposal must comprehensively address social equity. House Majority Leader Jason Rojas (D)Continue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":458,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[18,81],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48003"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/458"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48003"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48003\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":48004,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48003\/revisions\/48004"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48003"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48003"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48003"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
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\nRead More: Connecticut Marijuana Legalization Deal In Question Following Progressive Pushback As Session\u2019s End Nears<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"