Marijuana-related legislation in the 2024 Virginia General Assembly Session
How to use this tracker:
This page will assist you in tracking, understanding, and taking action on cannabis-related bills moving through the 2024 Virginia General Assembly.
Click the bill title for the complete text and additional information on LIS.
The date of last action on the bill follows the summary. We usually update this at night and try to include what the next anticipated action will be.
When a bill is docketed, the hearing information will follow the last action.
Questions? Contact Virginia NORML at [email protected] or join us Fridays at 4PM (session permitting) for Live with NORML, now streaming on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
What the motions on bills mean:
Lay the bill on the table Suspends debate of the bill. It can be recalled from the table later, but this rarely happens.
Pass the bill by indefinitely Ends debate of the bill. The bill has been killed and is dead for the session.
Report the bill Sends the bill to the House or Senate for a floor vote.
Refer or Rerefer Sends the bill to a Committee or Subcommittee.
Final outcomes for bills:
| 9 | SUCCEEDED Bill passed both chambers by vote and has been sent to the Governor for action | |
| 3 | SIGNED Bill has been signed by the Governor and will become law | |
| 2 | INCORPORATED Bill was incorporated into other similar and preferential bill | |
| 1 | CONTINUED Bill will be taken up in the same Committee in the following year, but is done for this session | |
| 0 | DEFEATED Bill was defeated by vote and will not pass this session | |
| 1 | FAILED TO PASS Bill was not heard by the House or Senate or otherwise failed to advance | |
| 2 | LEFT IN COMMITTEE Bill was not heard by the Committee or otherwise failed to advance | |
| 5 | VETOED Governor has vetoed the bill | |
| 0 | IN CONFERENCE Bill is in a committee of Senate and House members to reconcile a final version for approval | |
| 0 | AMENDMENTS Governor has proposed amendments to be considered by the General Assembly on 4/12/23 | |
| 0 | WITHDRAWN/STRICKEN Bill patron withdrew the bill |
Adult-use
VETOED: HB 698 Cannabis control; retail market; penalties.
Chief patron: Del Paul Krizek (D)
Cannabis control; retail market; penalties. Establishes a framework for the creation of a retail marijuana market in the Commonwealth, to be administered by the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority. The bill allows the Authority to begin issuing all marijuana licenses on July 1, 2025; however, the bill allows certain pharmaceutical processors to begin operations on July 1, 2024, and allows a limited number of other licensees to begin operations on January 1, 2025.
04/17/24 House: House sustained Governor's veto
INCORPORATED: SB 423 Cannabis control; retail market; penalties.
Chief patron: Sen Adam Ebbin (D)
Cannabis control; retail market; penalties. Establishes a framework for the creation of a retail marijuana market in the Commonwealth, to be administered by the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority. The bill allows the Authority to begin issuing all marijuana licenses on July 1, 2025; however, the bill allows certain pharmaceutical processors to begin operations on July 1, 2024, and allows a limited number of other licensees to begin operations on January 1, 2025.
01/26/24 Senate: Incorporated by Rehabilitation and Social Services (SB448-Rouse) (12-Y 0-N)
VETOED: SB 448 Cannabis control; retail market; penalties.
Chief patron: Sen Aaron Rouse (D)
Cannabis control; retail market; penalties. Establishes a framework for the creation of a retail marijuana market in the Commonwealth, which would be administered by the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority. The bill allows the Authority to begin issuing marijuana licenses on July 1, 2024, but provides that no marijuana sales may occur prior to January 1, 2025.
Criminalization
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 448 Marijuana presumption; driving or operating a motor vehicle, etc., while intoxicated; penalty.
Chief patron: Del Chris Obenshain (R)
Marijuana presumption; driving or operating a motor vehicle, etc., while intoxicated; penalty. Establishes a presumption of intoxication if a person has a blood concentration equal to or greater than 0.004 milligrams of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol per liter of blood.
02/13/24 House: Left in Courts of Justice
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 1102 Marijuana presumption; driving or operating a motor vehicle, etc., while intoxicated; penalty.
Chief patron: Del Wendell Walker (R)
Marijuana presumption; driving or operating a motor vehicle, etc., while intoxicated; penalty. Establishes a presumption of intoxication if a person has a blood concentration equal to or greater than 0.003 milligrams of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol per liter of blood.
02/13/24 House: Left in Courts of Justice
Employment
SIGNED: HB 149 Employee protections; medicinal use of cannabis oil.
Chief patron: Del Dan Helmer (D)
Employee protections; medicinal use of cannabis oil. Amends the provision that prohibits an employer from discriminating against an employee for such employee's lawful use of cannabis oil pursuant to a valid written certification issued by a practitioner for the treatment or to eliminate the symptoms of the employee's diagnosed condition or disease, with certain exceptions, by specifying that such use must conform to the laws of the Commonwealth and that such protections extend to the employees of the Commonwealth and other public bodies.
04/08/24 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 632 (effective 7/1/24)
SIGNED: SB 391 Employee protections; medicinal use of cannabis oil.
Chief patron: Sen Stella Pekarsky (D)
Employee protections; medicinal use of cannabis oil. Amends the provision that prohibits an employer from discriminating against an employee for such employee's lawful use of cannabis oil pursuant to a valid written certification issued by a practitioner for the treatment or to eliminate the symptoms of the employee's diagnosed condition or disease, with certain exceptions, by specifying that such use must conform to the laws of the Commonwealth and by excluding the employees of the Commonwealth and other public bodies from such protections.
04/08/24 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 674 (effective 7/1/24)
INCORPORATED: SB 529 Employee protections; medicinal use of cannabis oil.
Chief patron: Sen Emily Jordan (R)
Employee protections; medicinal use of cannabis oil. Amends the provision that prohibits an employer from discriminating against an employee for such employee's lawful use of cannabis oil pursuant to a valid written certification issued by a practitioner for the treatment or to eliminate the symptoms of the employee's diagnosed condition or disease, with certain exceptions, by specifying that such use must conform to the laws of the Commonwealth and by excluding the employees of the Commonwealth and other public bodies from such protections.
01/19/24 Senate: Incorporated by Rehabilitation and Social Services (SB391-Pekarsky) (11-Y 0-N)
Medical
SIGNED: HB 815 Medical cannabis program; product expiration; confidentiality; penalty.
Chief patron: Del Mike Cherry (R)
Medical cannabis program; product expiration; confidentiality; penalty. Increases from six months to 12 months the maximum expiration date allowable for a cannabis product after registration absent stability testing. The bill allows pharmaceutical processors to employ as pharmacy technician trainees individuals who have less than one year of experience and allows pharmaceutical processors to employ persons with less than one year of experience to perform certain other supervised duties for which current law requires two years of experience. The bill also provides for the confidentiality of certain records and other information of the Board of Directors of the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority, including the exemption of certain information from the mandatory disclosure provisions of the Virginia Freedom of Information Act.
04/08/24 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 732 (effective 7/1/24)
Parental Rights
VETOED: HB 833 Child abuse and neglect; custody and visitation, possession or consumption of authorized substances.
Chief patron: Del Rae Cousins (D)
Child abuse and neglect; custody and visitation; possession or consumption of authorized substances. Provides that a child shall not be considered an abused or neglected child, and no person shall be denied custody or visitation of a child, based only on the fact that the child's parent or other person responsible for his care, or the person petitioning for custody or visitation of the child, possessed or consumed legally authorized substances. The bill directs the Board of Social Services to amend its regulations, guidance documents, and other instructional materials to ensure that such regulations, documents, and materials comply with, and that investigations and family assessments are conducted by local departments of social services in accordance with, the provisions of the bill.
04/17/24 House: House sustained Governor's veto
VETOED: SB 115 Child abuse and neglect; custody and visitation, possession or consumption of authorized substances.
Chief patron: Sen Louise Lucas (D)
Child abuse and neglect; custody and visitation; possession or consumption of authorized substances. Provides that a child shall not be considered an abused or neglected child, and no person shall be denied custody or visitation of a child, based only on the fact that the child's parent or other person responsible for his care, or the person petitioning for custody or visitation of the child, possessed or consumed legally authorized substances. The bill directs the Board of Social Services to amend its regulations, guidance documents, and other instructional materials to ensure that such regulations, documents, and materials comply with, and that investigations and family assessments are conducted by local departments of social services in accordance with, the provisions of the bill.
04/17/24 Senate: Passed by for the day
Sentencing
FAILED: HB 179 Imprisonment; consecutive terms.
Chief patron: Del Debra Gardner (D)
Consecutive terms of imprisonment. Eliminates the required imposition of mandatory consecutive sentences of imprisonment.
02/13/24 House: Failed to pass in House
VETOED: SB 696 Marijuana related offenses; modification of sentence.
Chief patron: Sen Angelia Williams Graves (D)
Modification of sentence for marijuana-related offenses. Creates a process by which persons convicted of certain felony marijuana-related offenses committed prior to July 1, 2021, who remain incarcerated or on community supervision on July 1, 2024, may receive an automatic hearing to consider modification of such person's sentence. The bill also allows persons convicted of any felony offense committed prior to July 1, 2021, who remain incarcerated or on community supervision on July 1, 2024, and whose sentence may have been enhanced because of a previous felony marijuana offense or without the involvement of marijuana such felony offense conviction or felony sentence enhancement would not have been possible, as the involvement of marijuana was necessary to satisfy the elements of the charged offense or the sentence enhancement, to petition the circuit court for modification of such person's sentence. The bill requires such petition to be filed by July 1, 2026. The provisions of this bill sunset on July 1, 2027.
Resolutions
CONTINUED: HJ 63 Study; Virginia Cannabis Control Authority; creation of a retail cannabis market; report.
Chief patron: Del Terry Kilgore (R)
Study; Virginia Cannabis Control Authority; creation of a retail cannabis market; report. Requests the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority to study the creation of a retail cannabis market in the Commonwealth and draft regulations governing the indoor cultivation, processing, manufacturing, testing, packaging, labeling, distribution, sale, and delivery of cannabis. The resolution requires that such regulations include (i) appropriate application and license fees; (ii) reasonable restrictions on cannabis advertising; (iii) restrictions on product size and potency; (iv) transaction limits; (v) comprehensive enforcement mechanisms; (vi) provisions regarding tax collection and revenue allocation; (vii) provisions regarding participation in the retail marijuana market by persons in socioeconomically disadvantaged communities; and (viii) any other restrictions or requirements necessary to protect public health and safety, prevent diversion, and enforce regulated sales. The resolution requires the Authority to include certain persons in its study and to submit its executive summaries and reports to the General Assembly by the first day of the 2026 Session of the General Assembly.
01/29/24 House: Subcommittee recommends continuing to 2025 by voice vote
SUCCEEDED: SJ 32 Governor; confirming appointments.
Chief patron: Sen Aaron Rouse (D)
Confirming Governor's appointments; August 1. Confirms appointments of certain persons made by Governor Glenn Youngkin and communicated to the General Assembly August 1, 2023. Board of Directors of the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority: Anthony D. Williams of Virginia Beach, Virginia, Member, appointed July 1, 2023, for a term of five years beginning July 1, 2023, and ending June 30, 2028, to succeed Rasheeda Creighton.
Marijuana-related legislation in the 2023 Virginia General Assembly Session
How to use this tracker:
This page will assist you in tracking, understanding, and taking action on cannabis-related bills moving through the 2023 Virginia General Assembly.
Click the bill title for the complete text and additional information on LIS.
The date of last action on the bill follows the summary. We usually update this at night and try to include what the next anticipated action will be.
When a bill is docketed, the hearing information will follow the last action.
Questions? Contact Virginia NORML at [email protected] or join us Fridays at 4PM (session permitting) for Live with Virginia NORML, now streaming on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
What the motions on bills mean:
Lay the bill on the table Suspends debate of the bill. It can be recalled from the table later, but this rarely happens.
Pass the bill by indefinitely Ends debate of the bill. The bill has been killed and is dead for the session.
Report the bill Sends the bill to the House or Senate for a floor vote.
Refer or Rerefer Sends the bill to a Committee or Subcommittee.
Final outcomes for bills:
| 0 | CONTINUED Bill will be taken up in the same Committee in the following year, but is done for this session | |
| 12 | DEFEATED Bill was defeated by vote and will not pass this session | |
| 1 | INCORPORATED Bill was incorporated into other similar and preferential bill | |
| 4 | LEFT IN COMMITTEE Bill was not heard by the Committee or otherwise failed to advance | |
| 0 | SUCCEEDED Bill passed both chambers by vote and has been sent to the Governor for action | |
| 2 | WITHDRAWN/STRICKEN Bill patron withdrew the bill | |
| 0 | IN CONFERENCE Bill is in a committee of Senate and House members to reconcile a final version for approval | |
| 13 | SIGNED Bill has been signed by the Governor and will become law | |
| 0 | AMENDMENTS Governor has proposed amendments to be considered by the General Assembly on 4/12/23 |
Adult-use
DEFEATED: HB 1464 Cannabis control; retail market; transitional sales; penalties.
Chief patron: Del Keith Hodges (R)
Cannabis control; retail market; transitional sales; penalties. Establishes a framework for the creation of a retail marijuana market in the Commonwealth, which would be administered by the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority. The bill allows the Authority to begin issuing marijuana licenses on July 1, 2024. The bill allows, beginning July 1, 2023, certain pharmaceutical and industrial hemp processors, pending establishment of the retail market, to cultivate, manufacture, and sell cannabis products to persons 21 years of age or older.
01/31/23 House: Committee on General Laws votes to lay the bill on the table
Virginia NORML notes: This is a skinny bill similar to those filed in 2022 permitting adults 21+ to shop at existing medical dispensaries without certification beginning July 1, 2023 and contains provisions for the licensure of new cannabis companies.
DEFEATED: HB 1750 Cannabis control; retail market; transitional sales; penalties.
Chief patron: Del Michael Webert (R)
Cannabis control; retail market; transitional sales; penalties. Establishes a framework for the creation of a retail marijuana market in the Commonwealth, which would be administered by the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority. The bill allows the Authority to begin issuing marijuana licenses on January 1, 2024, but provides that no marijuana sales may occur prior to January 1, 2025.
01/31/23 House: Committee on General Laws votes to lay the bill on the table
Virginia NORML notes: This bill is similar to the one filed by Del Webert in 2022 and seeks to license adult-use cannabis retailers beginning 1/1/24 with sales beginning no sooner than 1/1/25.
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 1881 Virginia Cannabis Control Authority; limits powers of Boards of Directors.
Chief patron: Del Nick Freitas (R)
Virginia Cannabis Control Authority; Board of Directors; powers and duties; limitations. Imposes limits on the powers of the Board of Directors of the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority by prohibiting the Board from granting, suspending, or revoking licenses for the cultivation, manufacture, distribution, sale, or testing of marijuana and marijuana products in a manner that allows for the creation of a monopoly or otherwise lessens competition in the marijuana industry in the Commonwealth. The bill also provides that all citizens of the Commonwealth shall have equal access to apply to the Board for any such license and prohibits the Board from setting the fee for such license in excess of $1,000.
02/22/23 Senate: Left in Rehabilitation and Social Services
Virginia NORML notes: This bill was amended to refer only to industrial hemp.
DEFEATED: SB 1133 Cannabis control; retail market; transitional sales; regulated hemp products; penalties.
Chief patron: Sen Adam Ebbin (D)
Cannabis control; retail market; transitional sales; regulated hemp products; penalties. Establishes a framework for the creation of a retail marijuana market in the Commonwealth, which would be administered by the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority. The bill allows the Authority to begin issuing marijuana licenses on July 1, 2024, and allows, beginning July 1, 2023, certain pharmaceutical processors, pending establishment of the retail market, to cultivate, manufacture, and sell cannabis products to persons 21 years of age or older. The bill transitions from the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to the Authority the authority to regulate the testing, labeling, packaging, and advertising of regulated hemp products, as defined in the bill.
02/14/23 House: Subcommittee recommends passing by indefinitely (5-Y 3-N)
Virginia NORML notes: This bill is similar to the one filed by Sen Ebbin in 2022 and seeks to license adult-use cannabis retailers beginning 7/1/24 with adult-use sales beginning at existing medical dispensaries beginning 7/1/23.
DEFEATED: SB 1366 Virginia Cannabis Incubator Project.
Chief patrons: Sen Jennifer McClellan (D) Sen Barbara Favola (D)
Virginia Cannabis Incubator Project. Establishes a framework for the creation of the Virginia Cannabis Incubator Project in the Commonwealth. The bill creates a regulatory structure for such Incubator Project to be administered by the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority. The bill has a delayed effective date pending legalization of the manufacture, sale, and distribution of cannabis in the Commonwealth.
02/14/23 House: Subcommittee recommends passing by indefinitely (5-Y 3-N)
Virginia NORML notes: This bill requires substantial technical amendments.
Advertising
SIGNED: HB 2428 Marijuana; advertising restrictions, penalties.
Chief patron: Del Tony Wilt (R)
Marijuana; advertising restrictions; penalties. Makes it a Class 1 misdemeanor to advertise in or send any advertising matter into the Commonwealth regarding marijuana or marijuana products other than those that may be legally sold or to engage in advertising activities in violation of the provisions of the Cannabis Control Act or regulations of the Board of Directors of the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority. The bill provides that for violations of certain distance and zoning restrictions on outdoor advertising, as set forth in the bill, the Board must give the advertiser written notice to take corrective action and that, if such corrective action is not taken within 30 days, the advertiser is guilty of a Class 4 misdemeanor. The bill establishes numerous restrictions on marijuana advertisements, including provisions that prohibit advertisements from (i) targeting minors; (ii) being placed near schools, playgrounds, and certain other places; (iii) being displayed at a sporting event or on a billboard; (iv) being misleading, deceptive, or false; (v) referencing the intoxicating effects of marijuana; or (vi) promoting overconsumption or consumption by minors.
03/27/23 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 711 (effective 7/1/23)
SIGNED: SB 1233 Marijuana; advertising restrictions; penalties.
Chief patron: Sen Mark Obenshain (R)
Marijuana; advertising restrictions; penalties. Makes it a Class 1 misdemeanor to advertise in or send any advertising matter into the Commonwealth regarding marijuana or marijuana products other than those that may be legally sold or to engage in advertising activities in violation of the provisions of the Cannabis Control Act or regulations of the Board of Directors of the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority. The bill provides that for violations of certain distance and zoning restrictions on outdoor advertising, as set forth in the bill, the Board must give the advertiser written notice to take corrective action and that, if such corrective action is not taken within 30 days, the advertiser is guilty of a Class 4 misdemeanor. The bill establishes numerous restrictions on marijuana advertisements, including provisions that prohibit advertisements from (i) targeting minors; (ii) being placed near schools, playgrounds, and certain other places; (iii) being displayed at a sporting event or on a billboard; (iv) being misleading, deceptive, or false; (v) referencing the intoxicating effects of marijuana; or (vi) promoting overconsumption or consumption by minors.
03/27/23 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 711 (effective 7/1/23)
Budget
ENACTED: HB 1400 Budget Bill
Chief patron: Del Barry Knight (R)
Item 397 Cannabis Regulation and Enforcement (30800) Out of the amounts appropriated in this item, $8,200,000 the first year and $11,200,000 the second year from the general fund is provided for the startup and general operations of the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority. Included in these amounts, $3,000,000 the second year from the general fund is provided for low-interest and zero-interest loans to assist applicants and licensees, to be distributed by the Authority consistent with existing law.
Item 397 #1h Adjust Cannabis Control Authority Base Budget This amendment reduces the appropriation provided to the Cannabis Control Authority by $5.2 million from the general fund the first year and $8.2 million from the general fund the second year to reflect anticipated agency activities and expenditures in the 2022-24 Biennium.
04/12/23 House: Enacted, Chapter 769 (effective 4/12/23)
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: SB 800 Budget Bill
Chief patron: Sen Janet Howell (D) Sen George Barker (D)
Item 397 Cannabis Regulation and Enforcement (30800) Out of the amounts appropriated in this item, $8,200,000 the first year and $11,200,000 the second year from the general fund is provided for the startup and general operations of the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority. Included in these amounts, $3,000,000 the second year from the general fund is provided for low-interest and zero-interest loans to assist applicants and licensees, to be distributed by the Authority consistent with existing law.
Item 397 #1s Operational Costs Cannabis Retail Sales This amendment provides $6.0 million NGF the second year and 28 positions for the Cannabis Control Authority to implement the regulatory structure for legal cannabis sales in the Commonwealth. The Cannabis Control Authority has the authority to collect fees from pharmaceutical processors to cover operations.
02/22/23 House: Left in Appropriations
Virginia NORML notes: The amended budget increases necessary funding for the Cannabis Control Authority.
Consumer Safety
DEFEATED: HB 1973 Tetrahydrocannabinol; industrial hemp, regulated hemp products.
Chief patron: Del Jay Leftwich (R)
Tetrahydrocannabinol; industrial hemp; regulated hemp products. Establishes provisions for the registration of a retail facility for regulated hemp products, as defined in the bill, establishes product packaging, labeling, and testing requirements for such products, and creates a civil penalty of up to $1,000 for certain violations relating to such products. The bill requires any person who manufactures an industrial hemp extract, as defined in the bill, or food containing an industrial hemp extract to obtain a permit from the Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services and creates a Class 1 misdemeanor and a civil penalty of up to $10,000 for certain violations. The bill clarifies that any substances containing a concentration of total tetrahydrocannabinol, as defined in the bill, of more than 0.3 percent, including a hemp product or industrial hemp extract, are included in the definition of marijuana and also clarifies that the definition of marijuana does not include any substance containing tetrahydrocannabinol that has been placed by the Board of Pharmacy into one of the schedules set forth in the Drug Control Act. The bill increases the civil penalty for certain actions relating to sales of cigarettes and hemp products from $50 to $500. The bill also removes tetrahydrocannabinol from the Schedule I list of controlled substances and permits the Board of Pharmacy to schedule, deschedule, or reschedule a tetrahydrocannabinol isomer, except delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, or salts of such isomer in accordance with the provisions of the bill.
02/07/23 House: Passed by for the day
Virginia NORML notes: This bill intends to enact consumer protection mechanisms for currently unregulated cannabinoid products, introduced by Del Leftwich on behalf of the Youngkin Administration. However, the bill fails adequately capture all intoxicating cannabinoids and maintains the existing loopholes permitting the sale of intoxicating products. Virginia NORML has recommended technical amendments. This bill was defeated by adjournment of the House.
SIGNED: HB 2294 Marijuana; tetrahydrocannabinol; hemp products; civil penalty.
Chief patron: Del Terry Kilgore
Marijuana; tetrahydrocannabinol; hemp products; civil penalty. Modifies the definition of "marijuana" in drug laws, the Cannabis Control Act, and the Drug Control Act to (i) include any substance containing (a) a total tetrahydrocannabinol concentration that exceeds 0.3 percent or (b) more than one milligram of tetrahydrocannabinol per 100 grams of total product weight and (ii) exclude certain hemp products. The bill defines "tetrahydrocannabinol" to include any naturally occurring or synthetic tetrahydrocannabinol, including its salts, isomers, or salts of isomers, and removes references in the Code to delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol. The bill directs the Board of Agriculture and Consumer Services to adopt regulations that require hemp products not intended for human consumption, orally or by inhalation, to include a bittering agent that renders the products unpalatable. The bill creates a $5,000 civil penalty for persons that willfully commit a second or subsequent violation of certain provisions of the Virginia Consumer Protection Act related to products containing tetrahydrocannabinol.
04/12/23 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 794 (effective - see bill)
SIGNED: SB 903 Tetrahydrocannabinol; industrial hemp, regulated hemp products.
Chief patron: Sen Emmett Hanger (R)
Tetrahydrocannabinol; industrial hemp; regulated hemp products. Establishes provisions for the registration of a retail facility for regulated hemp products, as defined in the bill, establishes product packaging, labeling, and testing requirements for such products, and creates a civil penalty of up to $1,000 for certain violations relating to such products. The bill requires any person who manufactures an industrial hemp extract, as defined in the bill, or food containing an industrial hemp extract to obtain a permit from the Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services and creates a Class 1 misdemeanor and a civil penalty of up to $10,000 for certain violations. The bill clarifies that any substances containing a concentration of total tetrahydrocannabinol, as defined in the bill, of more than 0.3 percent, including a hemp product or industrial hemp extract, are included in the definition of marijuana and also clarifies that the definition of marijuana does not include any substance containing tetrahydrocannabinol that has been placed by the Board of Pharmacy into one of the schedules set forth in the Drug Control Act. The bill increases the civil penalty for certain actions relating to sales of cigarettes and hemp products from $50 to $500. The bill also removes tetrahydrocannabinol from the Schedule I list of controlled substances and permits the Board of Pharmacy to schedule, deschedule, or reschedule a tetrahydrocannabinol isomer, except delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, or salts of such isomer in accordance with the provisions of the bill.
04/12/23 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 744 (effective 7/1/23)
DEFEATED: SB 1393 Hemp products; license and label requirements.
Chief patron: Sen Lynwood Lewis (D)
Hemp products; license and label requirements. Requires the Board of Agriculture and Consumer Services to adopt certain regulations relating to industrial hemp and industrial hemp extracts intended for inhalation, as defined in the bill, that include labeling requirements, batch testing requirements, and tolerances for contaminants of such products. The bill requires any manufacturer of a hemp product, wholesale supplier that sells hemp products, or retail establishment that sells hemp products to register with the Board and pay an annual fee for a license to sell such products and also requires hemp products sold or offered for sale to have certain information included on the label. The bill updates the definition of industrial hemp to match the definition in federal law.
02/02/23 Senate: Passed by indefinitely in Finance and Appropriations (15-Y 1-N)
Virginia NORML notes: This bill attempts to regulate industrial hemp products intended for inhalation but fails to provide any meaningful consumer safety measures.
Criminalization
INCORPORATED: HB 1445 Issuing citations; certain traffic offenses and odor of marijuana, exclusion of evidence.
Chief patron: Del Scott Wyatt (R)
Issuing citations; certain traffic offenses and odor of marijuana; exclusion of evidence. Removes provisions prohibiting a law-enforcement officer from stopping a motor vehicle for operating (i) with an expired registration sticker prior to the first day of the fourth month after the original expiration date; (ii) with defective and unsafe equipment; (iii) without tail lights, brake lights, or a supplemental high mount stop light; (iv) without lighted headlights displayed when so required; (v) with certain tinting films, signs, posters, stickers or decals; (vi) with objects or other equipment suspended so as to obstruct the driver's view; or (vii) with an expired inspection prior to the first day of the fourth month after the original expiration date, as well as the accompanying exclusionary provisions. The bill also authorizes a law-enforcement officer to lawfully stop, search, or seize a person, place, or thing or a search warrant to be issued based solely on the odor of marijuana if such odor creates a reasonable suspicion of a violation of the law prohibiting driving while intoxicated.
01/23/23 House: Incorporated by Courts of Justice (HB1380-Campbell, R.R.) by voice vote
Virginia NORML notes: HB1445 has been incorporated into HB1380 which does not authorize a law-enforcement officer to lawfully stop, search, or seize a person, place, or thing or a search warrant to be issued based solely on the odor of marijuana if such odor creates a reasonable suspicion of a violation of the law prohibiting driving while intoxicated. Thus, this bill is no longer an issue for Virginia NORML. HB1390 is not likely to advance in the Senate.
DEFEATED: HB 1922 Delta-8 tetrahydrocannabinol; distribution; penalty.
Chief patron: Del John McGuire (R)
Delta-8 tetrahydrocannabinol; distribution; penalty. Makes it a Class 1 misdemeanor to sell, give, distribute, or possess with intent to sell, give, or distribute delta-8 tetrahydrocannabinol, except as authorized in the Drug Control Act. The bill directs the Department of Forensic Science to determine the proper methods for detecting delta-8 tetrahydrocannabinol in substances.
02/03/23 House: Failed to report (defeated) in Courts of Justice (10-Y 10-N)
Virginia NORML notes: This bill would enact criminal penalties for the sale of delta-8 THC products, but does not extend such penalties to the myriad of other synthesized cannabinoid products available in the Commonwealth. NORML's preferred policy position for such products is regulation, not criminalization.
DEFEATED: HB 2384 Marijuana; search and seizure; driving or operating a motor vehicle, etc., while intoxicated.
Chief patron: Del Les Adams
Marijuana; search and seizure; driving or operating a motor vehicle, etc., while intoxicated; marijuana presumption; saliva drug screening. Removes certain offenses, described in the bill, from the prohibition of searches without a search warrant for the odor of marijuana and establishes a presumption of intoxication if a person has a blood concentration equal to or greater than 0.003 milligrams of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol per liter of blood. The bill establishes a process for preliminary analysis of a person's saliva to screen for the presence of drugs in the saliva, similar to the process utilized for a person's blood alcohol content.
02/13/23 Senate: Passed by indefinitely in Judiciary (9-Y 6-N)
Virginia NORML notes: This bill would criminalize most anyone who consumes a cannabis product and drives, whether intoxicated or not. Proposed per se thresholds for THC are not evidence-based and may result in inadvertently criminalizing adults who previously consumed cannabis several days earlier but are no longer under the influence. Upon further review, this bill appears to establish a zero-tolerance standard. This legislation was introduced at the request of the Virginia Association of Commonwealth's Attorneys (VACA), which spoke in support of the bill on 1/23/23 in House Courts of Justice Subcommittee 1.
A 2019 report issued by the Congressional Research Service similarly concluded: “Research studies have been unable to consistently correlate levels of marijuana consumption, or THC in a person’s body, and levels of impairment. Thus, some researchers, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, have observed that using a measure of THC as evidence of a driver’s impairment is not supported by scientific evidence to date.”
Reports by both AAA and the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration also reject the use of per se thresholds as predictors of cannabis-induced driver impairment. (AAA testified in opposition to this bill on 1/23/23 in House Courts of Justice Subcommittee 1).
The study, “The failings of per se limits to detect cannabis-induced driving impairment: Results from a simulated driving study,” appears in Traffic Injury Prevention (2021). Further information is available from the NORML Fact Sheet, Marijuana and Psychomotor Performance.
This bill would also repeal the prohibition on using marijuana odor as the sole reason to stop, search, or seize a person, place, or thing.
Employment
DEFEATED: HB 1873 Employee protections; medicinal use of cannabis oil.
Chief patron: Del Dan Helmer (D)
Employee protections; medicinal use of cannabis oil. Amends the provision that prohibits an employer from discriminating against an employee for such employee's lawful use of cannabis oil pursuant to a valid written certification issued by a practitioner for the treatment or to eliminate the symptoms of the employee's diagnosed condition or disease, with certain exceptions, by specifying that such use must conform to the laws of the Commonwealth and by excluding the employees of the Commonwealth and other public bodies from such protections.
02/07/23 House: Left in Commerce and Energy
Virginia NORML notes: This bill has a drafting error. Virginia NORML has reviewed the substitute and supports the bill with amendments, which would specifically extend employment protections to state and municipal employees.
Expungement
SIGNED: HB 2400 Criminal records; expungement and sealing of records.
Chief patron: Del Charniele Herring (D)
Criminal records; expungement and sealing of records; repeal. Repeals the statute providing for the limitation on the dissemination of criminal history record information related to the possession of marijuana and the statute related to automatic sealing for mistaken identity or unauthorized use of identifying information. The bill also repeals the provisions related to the automatic and petition-based expungement of former marijuana offenses and instead provides for the sealing of such offenses. The bill also removes the provisions related to the automatic sealing of underage possession of alcohol offenses and instead provides for petition-based sealing of such offenses.
The bill creates an electronic, name-based criminal history record search to be used when an expungement or sealing petition is filed and requires the court to maintain a copy of a sealing order and send an electronic notification, rather than an order as current law requires, to the Department of State Police after an offense is sealed. The bill also allows courts and attorneys for the Commonwealth to access sealed records in instances where the court or parties failed to strictly comply with sealing procedures or an order for sealing was entered contrary to law and clarifies that a petition for sealing can only include offenses that arose out of the same transaction or occurrence. The bill makes additional changes to the processes for expungement and sealing, including updates to the process of forwarding a petitioner's criminal history record to the court and maintaining expungement pleadings under seal. The bill provides a petition process by which the person who was charged with an offense that was ordered to be expunged may request access to such expunged court or police record.
The repeal of the statute related to the limitation on the dissemination of criminal history record information related to the possession of marijuana and various other provisions of the bill have a delayed effective date of the earlier of (i) the date on which the processes to seal criminal history record information and court records pursuant to Chapters 524 and 542 of the Acts of Assembly of 2021, Special Session I, become effective or (ii) July 1, 2025. This bill is a recommendation of the Virginia State Crime Commission.
03/26/23 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 554 (effective - see bill)
Virginia NORML notes: This is a technical clean-up bill at the request of the Virginia Crime Commission.
SIGNED: SB 1402 Criminal records; expungement and sealing of records.
Chief patron: Sen Scott Surovell (D)
Criminal records; expungement and sealing of records; repeal. Repeals the statute providing for the limitation on the dissemination of criminal history record information related to the possession of marijuana and the statute related to automatic sealing for mistaken identity or unauthorized use of identifying information. The bill also repeals the provisions related to the automatic and petition-based expungement of former marijuana offenses and instead provides for the sealing of such offenses. The bill also removes the provisions related to the automatic sealing of underage possession of alcohol offenses and instead provides for petition-based sealing of such offenses.
The bill creates an electronic, name-based criminal history record search to be used when an expungement or sealing petition is filed and requires the court to maintain a copy of a sealing order and send an electronic notification, rather than an order as current law requires, to the Department of State Police after an offense is sealed. The bill also allows courts and attorneys for the Commonwealth to access sealed records in instances where the court or parties failed to strictly comply with sealing procedures or an order for sealing was entered contrary to law and clarifies that a petition for sealing can only include offenses that arose out of the same transaction or occurrence. The bill makes additional changes to the processes for expungement and sealing, including updates to the process of forwarding a petitioner's criminal history record to the court and maintaining expungement pleadings under seal. The bill provides a petition process by which the person who was charged with an offense that was ordered to be expunged may request access to such expunged court or police record.
The repeal of the statute related to the limitation on the dissemination of criminal history record information related to the possession of marijuana and various other provisions of the bill have a delayed effective date of the earlier of (i) the date on which the processes to seal criminal history record information and court records pursuant to Chapters 524 and 542 of the Acts of Assembly of 2021, Special Session I, become effective or (ii) July 1, 2025. This bill is a recommendation of the Virginia State Crime Commission.
03/26/23 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 554 (effective - see bill)
Virginia NORML notes: This is a technical clean-up bill at the request of the Virginia Crime Commission.
Medical
SIGNED: HB 1598 Medical cannabis program; transition from Board of Pharmacy to Virginia Cannabis Control Authority.
Chief patron: Del Roxanne Robinson (R)
Medical cannabis program; transition from Board of Pharmacy to Virginia Cannabis Control Authority. Transfers oversight and administration of the Commonwealth's medical cannabis program from the Board of Pharmacy to the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority.
04/12/23 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 773 (effective - see bill)
SIGNED: HB 1846 Medical marijuana program; product, registration, dispensing, and recordkeeping requirements.
Chief patron: Del Chris Head (R)
Medical marijuana program; product, registration, dispensing, and recordkeeping requirements; advertising. Allows pharmacists who are employed by a pharmaceutical processor or cannabis dispensing facility to issue written certificates for cannabis products if the pharmacist (i) is acting as the agent of a practitioner, (ii) is acting pursuant to policies established by a practitioner who has contracted with a pharmaceutical processor or cannabis dispensing facility to serve as the medical director of such pharmaceutical processor or cannabis dispensing facility, and (iii) has verified the patient's diagnosis with a practitioner with whom the patient has a bona fide practitioner-patient relationship. The bill amends and adds numerous provisions regarding the Commonwealth's medical marijuana program, including provisions related to recordkeeping, product registration, expiration dates, allowable deviations, dispensing, packing, labeling, and advertising. The bill requires pharmaceutical processors and cannabis dispensing facilities to collect and provide to the Board of Pharmacy by July 1, 2024, data regarding implementation of the bill. The bill also requires the Board of Pharmacy to make certain amendments to its regulations.
04/12/23 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 780 (effective 7/1/23)
SIGNED: HB 2368 Medical marijuana program; product requirements; certifications; reporting.
Chief patron: Del Dawn Adams (D)
Medical marijuana program; product requirements; certifications; reporting. Requires cannabis product and botanical cannabis labels to be complete, accurate, easily discernable, and uniform among different products and brands and that each label, which shall be included on the product and on the pharmaceutical processor's website, include (i) the product name, (ii) all active and inactive ingredients, (iii) the total percentage and milligrams of tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol included in the product and the number of milligrams of tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol in each serving, (iv) the amount of product that constitutes a single serving and the amount recommended for use by the practitioner or dispensing pharmacist, (v) information regarding the product's purpose and detailed usage directions, and (vi) child and safety warnings in a conspicuous font. The bill also requires that no less than 50 percent of all cannabis products offered for sale by a pharmaceutical processor or cannabis dispensing facility (a) contain cannabidiol as its primary cannabinoid and (b) have low levels of or no tetrahydrocannabinol. The bill provides that a patient's registered agent shall not be required to register with the Board of Pharmacy when such registered agent is listed on the patient's written certification pursuant to the patient's request and in the discretion of the practitioner based on medical need. The bill also requires that, in the case of cannabis products, the Prescription Monitoring Program include only the information specified in law, which is amended by the bill.
04/12/23 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 799 (effective 7/1/23)
WITHDRAWN: HB 2369 Medical marijuana program; dispensaries.
Chief patron: Del Dawn Adams (D)
Medical marijuana program; dispensaries. Removes the requirement that a cannabis dispensing facility be owned, at least in part, by a pharmaceutical processor and increases from five to 12 the number of cannabis dispensing facility permits the Board of Pharmacy may issue per year in each health service area.
02/02/23 House: HWI sub: Subcommittee #3
Virginia NORML notes: This bill would increase from 5 to 12 the number of medical cannabis dispensing facilities (retail only) allowed in each Health Service Area. The Delegate withdrew the bill
SIGNED: SB 788 Medical cannabis program; transition from Board of Pharmacy to Virginia Cannabis Control Authority.
Chief patron: Sen Barbara Favola (D)
Medical cannabis program; transition from Board of Pharmacy to Virginia Cannabis Control Authority. Transfers oversight and administration of the Commonwealth's medical cannabis program from the Board of Pharmacy to the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority.
04/12/23 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 740 (effective - see bill)
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: SB 1090 Board of Pharmacy; permit to operate pharmaceutical processor or cannabis dispensing facility.
Chief patron: Sen Adam Ebbin (D)
Board of Pharmacy; permit to operate pharmaceutical processor or cannabis dispensing facility. Increases the limit on the number of permits that the Board of Pharmacy (the Board) may issue or renew in any year from one to two pharmaceutical processors for each health service area established by the Board of Health. The bill also allows the Board to issue or renew permits in any year for up to five cannabis dispensing facilities per pharmaceutical processor for each health service area. Under current law, the Board may issue up to five cannabis dispensing facilities for each health service area. With the exception of pharmaceutical processors permitted prior to July 1, 2023, the bill prohibits a pharmaceutical processor from receiving more than one permit from the Board.
02/22/23 House: Left in Health, Welfare and Institutions
Virginia NORML notes: As amended by Sen McPike, this bill would restrict the issuing of medical cannabis permits only applicants which are owned at least 50% by hemp processors or growers that have registered with the VDACS prior to January 1, 2020, satisfied all background check and other security clearance requirements prior to December 31, 2022, have no less than $1 million in liquid or nonliquid assets, and have submitted planting and propagation reports for 5,000 square feet or more of hemp cultivation or processed an equivalent amount of hemp.
SIGNED: SB 1337 Medical marijuana program; product, registration, dispensing, and recordkeeping requirements.
Chief patron: Sen Siobhan Dunnavant (R)
Medical marijuana program; product, registration, dispensing, and recordkeeping requirements; advertising. Allows pharmacists who are employed by a pharmaceutical processor or cannabis dispensing facility to issue written certificates for cannabis products if the pharmacist (i) is acting as the agent of a practitioner, (ii) is acting pursuant to policies established by a practitioner who has contracted with a pharmaceutical processor or cannabis dispensing facility to serve as the medical director of such pharmaceutical processor or cannabis dispensing facility, and (iii) has verified the patient's diagnosis with a practitioner with whom the patient has a bona fide practitioner-patient relationship. The bill amends and adds numerous provisions regarding the Commonwealth's medical marijuana program, including provisions related torecordkeeping, product registration, expiration dates, allowable deviations, dispensing, packing, labeling, and advertising. The bill requires pharmaceutical processors and cannabis dispensing facilities to collect and provide to the Board of Pharmacy by July 1, 2024, data regarding implementation of the bill. The bill also requires the Board of Pharmacy to make certain amendments to its regulations.
04/12/23 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 760 (effective 7/1/23)
SIGNED: SB 1533 Medical marijuana program; additional cultivation facility.
Chief patron: Sen Creigh Deeds (D)
Medical marijuana program; additional cultivation facility. Allows each pharmaceutical processor that has obtained a permit to operate a pharmaceutical processing facility from the Board of Pharmacy to establish one additional location for the cultivation of cannabis plants, which must be located within the same health service area as the pharmaceutical processing facility.
05/12/23 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 812 (effective 7/1/23)
Parental Rights
STRICKEN: HJ 526 Study; Department of Social Services; marijuana possession or use as justification for removal.
Chief patron: Del Jeff Bourne (D)
Child abuse and neglect; custody and visitation; possession or use of marijuana. Provides that a child shall not be considered an abused or neglected child, and no person shall be denied custody or visitation of a child, based solely on the fact that the child's parent or other person responsible for his care, or the person petitioning for custody or visitation of the child, possessed or consumed marijuana in accordance with applicable law. The bill directs the Board of Social Services to amend its regulations, guidance documents, and other instructional materials to ensure that such regulations, documents, and materials comply with, and that investigations and family assessments are conducted by local departments of social services in accordance with, the provisions of the bill.
01/16/23 House: Stricken from House calendar
Virginia NORML notes: The patron withdrew the bill and it was stricken from the calendar.
DEFEATED: SB 1214 Child abuse and neglect; custody and visitation; possession or use of marijuana.
Chief patron: Sen Louise Lucas (D)
Child abuse and neglect; custody and visitation; possession or use of marijuana. Provides that a child shall not be considered an abused or neglected child, and no person shall be denied custody or visitation of a child, based solely on the fact that the child's parent or other person responsible for his care, or the person petitioning for custody or visitation of the child, possessed or consumed marijuana in accordance with applicable law. The bill directs the Board of Social Services to amend its regulations, guidance documents, and other instructional materials to ensure that such regulations, documents, and materials comply with, and that investigations and family assessments are conducted by local departments of social services in accordance with, the provisions of the bill.
02/13/23 House: Subcommittee failed to recommend reporting (3-Y 4-N)
Virginia NORML notes: Virginia NORML has provided amendments to this bill to include medical cannabis. With amendments accepted, Virgina NORML supports the bill.
Sentencing
DEFEATED: SB 1523 Marijuana related offenses; modification of sentence.
Chief patron: Sen Louise Lucas (D)
Modification of sentence for marijuana related offenses. Creates a process by which persons convicted of certain felony marijuana-related offenses committed prior to July 1, 2022, who remain incarcerated or on community supervision on July 1, 2023, may receive an automatic hearing to consider modification of such person's sentence. The bill also allows persons convicted of any felony offense committed prior to July 1, 2022, who remain incarcerated or on community supervision on July 1, 2023, and whose sentence may have been enhanced because of a previous felony marijuana offense or without the involvement of marijuana such felony offense conviction or felony sentence enhancement would not have been possible, as the involvement of marijuana was necessary to satisfy the elements of the charged offense or the sentence enhancement, to petition the circuit court for modification of such person's sentence. The bill requires such petition to be filed by July 1, 2025. The provisions of this bill sunset on July 1, 2026.
02/17/23 House: Subcommittee recommends passing by indefinitely (5-Y 3-N)
Virginia NORML notes: Virginia NORML supports the bill.
Taxation
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 1547 Cannabis; deconforms from federal law. licensees.
Chief patron: Del Jeffrey Campbell (R)
Conformity with the Internal Revenue Code; cannabis licensees. Deconforms from federal law, as it applies to Virginia medical and recreational cannabis licensees, the prohibition on a deduction for any amount paid or incurred during the taxable year in carrying on any trade or business if such trade or business consists of trafficking in a controlled substance prohibited by federal law.
02/07/23 House: Left in Appropriations
Virginia NORML notes: This bill would allow medical and future adult-use cannabis businesses licensed in Virginia to utilize tax deductions for ordinary and necessary expenditures. As this would reduce overall costs, thus providing potential to reduce costs for consumers. Virginia NORML has provided technical amendments.
SIGNED: HB 1563 Sales and use tax; agricultural exemptions.
Chief patron: Del Buddy Fowler (R)
Sales and use tax; agricultural exemptions. Provides a sales and use tax exemption for property used to produce agricultural products for market in an indoor, closed, controlled-environment commercial agricultural facility. The property exempted includes (i) internal structural components required to create the necessary growing environment for plants, including watering systems, towers for growing plants, and lighting and air systems, and (ii) transparent elements of external structural components of such facilities, including windows, walls, and roofs, that allow sunlight in for the commercial production of agricultural products. The exemption shall not apply to property used in producing cannabis.
03/26/23 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 516 (effective 7/1/23)
DEFEATED: SB 1095 Cannabis; deconforms from federal law. licensees.
Chief patron: Sen Adam Ebbin (D)
Conformity with the Internal Revenue Code; cannabis licensees. Deconforms from federal law, as it applies to Virginia medical and recreational cannabis licensees, for the prohibition on a deduction for any amount paid or incurred during the taxable year in carrying on any trade or business if such trade or business consists of trafficking in a controlled substance prohibited by federal law.
02/17/23 House: Subcommittee recommends laying on the table (4-Y 2-N)
Virginia NORML notes: This bill would allow medical cannabis businesses licensed in Virginia to utilize tax deductions for ordinary and necessary expenditures. As this would reduce overall costs, thus providing potential to reduce costs for consumers. Virginia NORML has provided technical amendments.
Senate Kills Governor’s Recriminalization Amendment, Bill Addressing Synthetically Derived Marijuana Products
Republican Gov. Glen Youngkin’s recent attempt to recriminalize activities involving the possession of two ounces of marijuana by adults via the enactment of an amendment to SB 591 has been defeated for the session. That effort failed on Wednesday with lawmakers’ refusal to advance the bill it was added to, SB 591.
Legislators voted to re-refer SB 591 to the Senate Rehabilitation and Social Services committee. With the 2022 legislative session having already ended, this vote effectively ends any further discussion on the legislation this year.
Read moreMarijuana-related legislation in the 2022 Virginia General Assembly Session
How to use this tracker:
This page will assist you in tracking, understanding, and taking action on cannabis-related bills moving through the 2022 Virginia General Assembly.
Click the bill title for the complete text and additional information on LIS.
The date of last action on the bill follows the summary. We usually update this at night and try to include what the next anticipated action will be.
When a bill is docketed, the hearing information will follow the last action.
Questions? Contact Virginia NORML at [email protected] or join us Fridays at 4PM (session permitting) for Live with Virginia NORML, now streaming on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
What the motions on bills mean:
Lay the bill on the table Suspends debate of the bill. It can be recalled from the table later, but this rarely happens.
Pass the bill by indefinitely Ends debate of the bill. The bill has been killed and is dead for the session.
Report the bill Sends the bill to the House or Senate for a floor vote.
Refer or Rerefer Sends the bill to a Committee or Subcommittee.
Final outcomes for bills:
| 2 | CONTINUED Bill will be taken up in the same Committee in the following year, but is done for this session | |
| 5 | DEFEATED Bill was defeated by vote and will not pass this session | |
| 3 | INCORPORATED Bill was incorporated into other similar and preferential bill | |
| 24 | LEFT IN COMMITTEE Bill was not heard by the Committee or otherwise failed to advance | |
| 2 | SUCCEEDED Bill passed both chambers by vote and has been sent to the Governor | |
| 1 | WITHDRAWN Bill patron withdrew the bill | |
| 0 | IN CONFERENCE Bill is in a committee of Senate and House members to reconcile a final version for approval |
Adult-use
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: SB 591 Cannabis; shape prohibitions.
Chief patron: Sen Emmett Hanger R-24
Cannabis; shape prohibitions. Requires the Board of Directors of the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority to promulgate regulations that prohibit the production and sale of retail marijuana and retail marijuana products that depict or are in the shape of a human, animal, vehicle, or fruit.
03/10/22 Senate: House amendment agreed to by Senate (33-Y 7-N)
Virginia NORML notes: Prohibiting such shapes is a standard in the US cannabis industry and Virginia regulations would already have required this. The substitute would also apply these restrictions to "hemp" products and limit the quantity of THC in such products.
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 43 Retail marijuana stores; requirement for local referendum.
Chief patron: Del Lee Ware R-65
Retail marijuana stores; requirement for local referendum. Provides that if an act of assembly is passed by the 2022 Session of the General Assembly that authorizes the operation of retail marijuana stores in the Commonwealth, such retail marijuana stores may be located only in localities that have approved the operation of retail marijuana stores through a referendum held in accordance with the provisions of the bill.
02/15/22 House: Left in General Laws
Virginia NORML notes: As proposed in 2021, localities wishing to prohibit retail sales would be fiscally responsible for holding such referenda. The intent of this bill appears to be to instead shift the financial burden to localities wishing to comport with state law and allow legal retail sales.
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 72 Marijuana cultivation facility licenses; prohibition on sale of plants and seeds.
Chief patron: Del Lee Ware R-65
Marijuana cultivation facility licenses; prohibition on sale of plants and seeds. Provides that, if an act of assembly is passed by the 2022 Session of the General Assembly that creates a license that authorizes the licensee to cultivate retail marijuana and perform related activities, such licensees shall not be permitted to sell mature or immature marijuana plants or marijuana seeds to consumers.
02/15/22 House: Left in General Laws
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 176 Cannabis control; vertical integration, social equity.
Chief patron: Del Daniel Marshall R-14
Cannabis control; vertical integration; social equity. Requires the Board of Directors of the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority (the Board) to promulgate regulations that allow to qualify as a social equity applicant, and therefore receive certain licensing preferences and advantages, any applicant that has lived or been domiciled for at least 12 months in the Commonwealth and whose principal place of business is, and was prior to July 1, 2021, located in a jurisdiction determined by the Board to be economically distressed. The bill also provides that, if an act of assembly is passed by the 2022 Session of the General Assembly that creates licenses to allow for the cultivation, manufacture, wholesale, and retail sale of retail marijuana and retail marijuana products in the Commonwealth, any industrial hemp processor that meets certain registration, program, and production requirements set forth in the bill shall be permitted to possess one or any combination of such licenses upon payment of a $1 million fee to the Board and submission of and compliance with a diversity, equity, and inclusion plan.
02/15/22 House: Left in General Laws
Virginia NORML notes: This bill is specific to allowing large industrial hemp processors to vertically integrate as cannabis processors without a competitive licensing process.
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 211 Retail sale of cannabis products by certain pharmaceutical processors; sunset.
Chief patron: Del Keith Hodges R-98
Retail sale of cannabis products by certain pharmaceutical processors; sunset. Allows certain pharmaceutical processors to, under the oversight of the Board of Pharmacy, sell cannabis products at retail to unregistered persons who are 21 years of age or older without the need for a written certification. The bill provides that such sales will be subject to existing Board of Pharmacy regulations and other requirements set forth in the bill. The bill requires pharmaceutical processors engaging in such sales to pay a $1 million fee and collect a 21 percent excise tax, both of which shall ultimately be allocated to the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority to be used to assist independent cannabis retailers located in designated rural and urban opportunity zones. The bill also requires such pharmaceutical processors to submit and comply with a plan describing how the pharmaceutical processor will, in its health service area, educate consumers about responsible consumption of cannabis products and incubate independent cannabis retailers or support and educate persons that wish to participate in the cannabis market. The bill directs the Board of Directors of the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority to promulgate regulations governing sales, cultivation, extraction, processing, manufacturing, wholesaling, and other related activities conducted pursuant to the provisions of the bill and provides that, upon the adoption of such regulations, oversight of such activities shall transfer from the Board of Pharmacy to the Board of Directors of the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority. The bill expires when pharmaceutical processors engaging in the sale of cannabis products pursuant to the provisions of the bill are authorized by the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority to apply for and be granted licenses to cultivate, manufacture, wholesale, and sell at retail to consumers 21 years of age or older retail marijuana and retail marijuana products.
02/15/22 House: Left in General Laws
Virginia NORML notes: This is a standalone bill to allow existing medical dispensaries to begin adult-use retail sales. Such sales will also be included in the broader adult-use reenactment bill.
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 287 Cannabis; replaces the term "marijuana" throughout the Cannabis Control Act.
Chief patron: Del Dawn Adams D-68
Cannabis. Replaces the term "marijuana" with the term "cannabis" throughout the Cannabis Control Act. The bill also replaces the terms "botanical cannabis" and "cannabis" with the term "medical cannabis" throughout the sections of the Code of Virginia that govern pharmaceutical processors and the issuance of written certifications for the use of cannabis products and oil.
02/15/22 House: Left in General Laws
Virginia NORML notes: This bill includes policy recommendations and language provided by Virginia NORML.
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 301 Virginia Cannabis Control Authority; membership criteria for Board members, allocation of revenues.
Chief patron: Del Nicholas Freitas R-30
Board of Directors of the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority; Cannabis Public Health Advisory Council; membership criteria; allocation of revenue. Requires that one member of the Board of Directors of the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority (the Board) be a person who has recovered from a substance use disorder and is not employed by a government entity. The bill increases from 21 to 25 the number of members on the Cannabis Public Health Advisory Council and requires that four members be persons who have recovered from a substance use disorder and are not employed by a government entity. The bill requires that 40 percent of the Board's net profits distributed to the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services be allocated to private certified recovery residences that provide low-cost evidence-based substance use disorder treatment and recovery services and satisfy certain other requirements set forth in the bill.
02/15/22 House: Left in General Laws
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 318 Peer Recovery Support Fund; established.
Chief patron: Del Nicholas Freitas R-30
Peer Recovery Support Fund. Establishes the Peer Recovery Support Fund (the Fund) to provide payment for the cost of peer-to-peer substance abuse recovery support services provided by individuals other than state or local government employees. The bill requires that 10 percent of the net profits of the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority derived from the sale of marijuana be appropriated to the Fund in the general appropriation act. The bill also directs the Board of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services to develop regulations setting forth criteria for payments for peer-to-peer substance abuse recovery support services provided by individuals other than state or local government employees from the Fund.
02/15/22 House: Left in Appropriations
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 430 Cannabis control; retail market; penalties.
Chief patron: Del Charniele Herring D-46
Cannabis control; retail market; penalties. Establishes a framework for the creation of a retail marijuana market in the Commonwealth. The bill creates a regulatory and licensing structure for such retail market and for the cultivation, manufacture, and wholesale of marijuana and marijuana products to be administered by the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority. The bill also relocates and modifies numerous criminal provisions regarding marijuana offenses. The bill has staggered effective dates. The bill satisfies the reenactment requirement of Chapters 550 and 551 of the Acts of Assembly of 2021, Special Session I, but makes numerous modifications to the provisions of the 2021 legislation related to criminal penalties, expungement, regulation of certain hemp products, and diversity, equity, and inclusion.
02/15/22 House: Left in General Laws
Virginia NORML notes: This bill is the Democratic reenactment bill for adult-use as required by 2021 legislation and includes multiple amendments to the 2021 version. This bill is likely to be incorporated into the House Republican version.
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 875 Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Board; Board of Directors of Virginia Cannabis Control Authority.
Chief patron: Del Alfonso Lopez D-49
Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Board; Board of Directors of Virginia Cannabis Control Authority; Cannabis Public Health Advisory Council; membership criteria. Adds to the membership of the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Board, Board of Directors of Virginia Cannabis Control Authority, and Cannabis Public Health Advisory Council one member who is an alumni of an institution of higher education at which Hispanic students comprise at least 25 percent of the institution's full-time undergraduate enrollment.
02/15/22 House: Left in General Laws
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 950 Cannabis control; retail market; penalties.
Chief patron: Del Michael Webert R-18
Cannabis control; retail market; penalties. Establishes a framework for the creation of a retail marijuana market in the Commonwealth. The bill creates a regulatory and licensing structure for such retail market and for the cultivation, manufacture, and wholesale of marijuana and marijuana products, to be administered by the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority. The bill also relocates and modifies numerous criminal provisions regarding marijuana offenses. The bill has staggered effective dates.
02/15/22 House: Left in General Laws
Virginia NORML notes: This bill is the Republican reenactment bill for adult-use as required by 2021 legislation and includes multiple amendments to the 2021 version. This bill is likely to be the leading bill in the House.
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 1202 Conformity with the Internal Revenue Code; cannabis licensees.
Chief patron: Del Jeffrey Campbell R-6
Conformity with the Internal Revenue Code; cannabis licensees. Deconforms from federal law, as it applies to Virginia medical and recreational cannabis licensees, the prohibition on a deduction or credit for any amount paid or incurred during the taxable year in carrying on any trade or business if such trade or business consists of trafficking in a controlled substance prohibited by federal law.
02/15/22 House: Left in Appropriations
DEFEATED: SB 107 Marijuana tax; revenue allocations.
Chief patron: Sen Thomas Norment R-3
Marijuana tax; revenue allocations. Reallocates revenues from the state marijuana tax so that the 30 percent currently allocated to the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Fund would be reallocated to the general fund.
02/08/22 Senate: Passed by indefinitely in Finance and Appropriations (12-Y 4-N)
Virginia NORML notes: This bill intended to eliminate funding for low-interest and zero-interest loans to social equity qualified cannabis licensees in order to foster business ownership and economic growth within communities that have been the most disproportionately impacted by the former prohibition of cannabis. This bill was not likely to advance in the Senate.
WITHDRAWN: SB 313 Retail sale of cannabis products by certain pharmaceutical processors and industrial hemp.
Chief patron: Sen Adam Ebbin D-30
Retail sale of cannabis products by certain pharmaceutical processors and industrial hemp processors; sunset. Allows certain pharmaceutical processors and industrial hemp processors to sell, under the oversight of the Board of Directors of the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority (the Board), cannabis products at retail to unregistered persons who are 21 years of age or older without the need for a written certification. The bill directs the Board to adopt and enforce regulations governing such sales that shall model certain Board of Pharmacy regulations and comply with other requirements set forth in the bill. The bill requires pharmaceutical processors and industrial hemp processors engaging in such sales to pay a $1 million fee and collect a 21 percent excise tax, both of which shall ultimately be allocated to the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority to be used to assist independent cannabis retailers located in designated rural and urban opportunity zones. The bill also requires such pharmaceutical processors and industrial hemp processors to submit and comply with a plan describing how the processor will educate consumers about responsible consumption of cannabis products and incubate independent cannabis retailers or support and educate persons that wish to participate in the cannabis market. The bill has a delayed effective date of January 1, 2023, and shall expire when pharmaceutical processors and industrial hemp processors engaging in the sale of cannabis products pursuant to the provisions of the bill are authorized by the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority to apply for and be granted licenses to cultivate, manufacture, wholesale, and sell at retail to consumers 21 years of age or older retail marijuana and retail marijuana products.
02/15/22 Senate: Stricken from Senate calendar (38-Y 2-N)
Virginia NORML notes: This bill contains policy recommendations from the Cannabis Oversight Commission for transitional sales.
CONTINUED: SB 391 Cannabis control; retail market; penalties.
Chief patron: Sen Adam Ebbin D-30
Cannabis control; retail market; penalties. Establishes a framework for the creation of a retail marijuana market in the Commonwealth. The bill creates a regulatory and licensing structure for such retail market and for the cultivation, manufacture, and wholesale of marijuana and marijuana products to be administered by the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority. The bill also relocates and modifies numerous criminal provisions regarding marijuana offenses. The bill has staggered effective dates. The bill satisfies the reenactment requirement of Chapters 550 and 551 of the Acts of Assembly of 2021, Special Session I, but makes numerous modifications to the provisions of the 2021 legislation related to licensure, criminal penalties, expungement, regulation of certain hemp products, local regulation, and diversity, equity, and inclusion.
03/01/22 House: Continued to 2023 in General Laws (12-Y 10-N)
Virginia NORML notes: This bill contains policy recommendations from the Cannabis Oversight Commission for adult-use retail sales.
INCORPORATED: SB 621 Cannabis products; retail sales by certain pharmaceutical processors.
Chief patron: Sen Siobhan Dunnavant R-12
Retail sale of cannabis products by certain pharmaceutical processors; sunset. Allows certain pharmaceutical processors to, under the oversight of the Board of Pharmacy, sell cannabis products at retail to unregistered persons who are 21 years of age or older without the need for a written certification. The bill provides that such sales will be subject to existing Board of Pharmacy regulations and other requirements set forth in the bill. The bill requires pharmaceutical processors engaging in such sales to collect a 21 percent excise tax, to be deposited into the general fund, and pay a $1 million fee, to be deposited into the account of the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority and used to assist independent cannabis retailers located in designated rural and urban opportunity zones. The bill also requires such pharmaceutical processors to submit and comply with a plan describing how the pharmaceutical processor will, in its health service area, educate consumers about responsible consumption of cannabis products and incubate independent cannabis retailers or support and educate persons that wish to participate in the cannabis market. The bill directs the Board of Directors of the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority to promulgate regulations governing sales, cultivation, extraction, processing, manufacturing, wholesaling, and other related activities conducted pursuant to the provisions of the bill and provides that, upon the effective date of such regulations, oversight of such activities shall transfer from the Board of Pharmacy to the Board of Directors of the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority. The bill expires when pharmaceutical processors engaging in the sale of cannabis products pursuant to the provisions of the bill are authorized by the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority to apply for and be granted licenses to cultivate, manufacture, wholesale, and sell at retail to consumers 21 years of age or older retail marijuana and retail marijuana products.
02/04/22 Senate: Incorporated by Rehabilitation and Social Services (SB313-Ebbin) (15-Y 0-N)
Virginia NORML notes: SB 313 contains policy recommendations from the Cannabis Oversight Commission for transitional sales
Criminalization
DEFEATED: HB 79 Marijuana and certain traffic offenses; issuing citations.
Chief patron: Del Ronnie Campbell R-24
Issuing citations; marijuana and certain traffic offenses. Removes the provisions that provide that no law-enforcement officer may lawfully stop a motor vehicle for operating (i) without a light illuminating a license plate, (ii) with defective and unsafe equipment, (iii) without brake lights or a high mount stop light, (iv) without an exhaust system that prevents excessive or unusual levels of noise, (v) with certain sun-shading materials and tinting films, and (vi) with certain objects suspended in the vehicle, and the accompanying the exclusionary provisions. The bill also repeals the provision that provides that no law-enforcement officer may lawfully stop, search, or seize any person, place, or thing solely on the basis of the odor of marijuana and that no evidence discovered or obtained as a result of such unlawful search or seizure shall be admissible in any trial, hearing, or other proceeding.
02/28/22 Senate: Passed by indefinitely in Judiciary (9-Y 6-N)
Virginia NORML notes: HB79 was successfully amended to remove the language repealing § 4.1-1302 which provides that provides that no law-enforcement officer may lawfully stop, search, or seize any person, place, or thing solely on the basis of the odor of marijuana and that no evidence discovered or obtained as a result of such unlawful search or seizure shall be admissible in any trial, hearing, or other proceeding.
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 361 Allowing access to, purchase for, or provision of marijuana to minors; penalties.
Chief patron: Del Vivian Watts D-39
Allowing access to, purchase for, or provision of marijuana to minors; penalties. Clarifies that it is a Class 1 misdemeanor for any person who cultivates marijuana plants for personal use to recklessly allow unauthorized access to such marijuana plants by a person younger than 21 years of age.
The bill provides that any person who purchases marijuana or marijuana products for, or otherwise gives, provides, or assists in the provision of marijuana or marijuana products to, another person when he knows or has reason to know that such person is younger than 21 years of age, except by any federal, state, or local law-enforcement officer when possession of marijuana or marijuana products is necessary in the performance of his duties, is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. The bill also removes marijuana from the types of drugs for which distribution to a person under the age of 18 is a felony punishable by a period not less than 10 nor more than 50 years, and a fine not more than $100,000 with the possibility of mandatory minimum sentences. Such provisions shall not become effective if the corresponding provisions of Chapters 550 and 551 of the Acts of Assembly of 2021, Special Session I, are reenacted by the 2022 Session of the General Assembly.
02/15/22 House: Left in Courts of Justice
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 960 Issuing citations; marijuana and certain traffic offenses; exclusion of evidence.
Chief patron: Del William Wampler III R-4
Issuing citations; marijuana and certain traffic offenses; exclusion of evidence. Removes provisions that no law-enforcement officer may lawfully stop a motor vehicle for operating (i) with an expired safety inspection or registration sticker until the first day of the fourth month after the original expiration date; (ii) with defective and unsafe equipment; (iii) without a light illuminating a license plate; (iv) without brake lights, a high mount stop light, or headlights; or (v) without an exhaust system that prevents excessive or unusual levels of noise, and the accompanying exclusionary provisions. The bill also removes the exclusionary provisions for operating a motor vehicle (a) in violation of certain restrictions on people with a learner's permit, (b) while smoking with a minor present, (c) with certain sun-shading materials and tinting films, (d) with certain objects suspended in the vehicle, and (e) without the required use of seat belts, and for certain violations involving pedestrians crossing a highway. The bill also removes the exclusionary provision that no law-enforcement officer may lawfully stop, search, or seize any person, place, or thing solely on the basis of the odor of marijuana.
02/15/22 House: Left in Courts of Justice
Virginia NORML notes: Current law provides that provides that no law-enforcement officer may lawfully stop, search, or seize any person, place, or thing solely on the basis of the odor of marijuana and that no evidence discovered or obtained as a result of such unlawful search or seizure shall be admissible in any trial, hearing, or other proceeding.
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 984 Liability for sale of alcohol or marijuana product to an underage person.
Chief patron: Del Chris Runion R-25
Liability for sale of alcohol or marijuana product to an underage person. Creates a cause of action against an alcoholic beverage control retail licensee or cannabis control retail licensee who sells alcohol or a marijuana product to an underage person if the consumption of the alcohol or marijuana product caused or contributed to an injury to person or property while the underage person operated a motor vehicle. The provisions of this act related to the sale of marijuana products have a delayed effective date of January 1, 2024.
02/15/22 House: Left in Courts of Justice
INCORPORATED: HB 1030 Issuing citations; marijuana and certain traffic offenses.
Chief patron: Del Terry Austin R-19
Issuing citations; marijuana and certain traffic offenses. Removes the provisions that provide that no law-enforcement officer may lawfully stop a motor vehicle for operating (i) without a light illuminating a license plate, (ii) with defective and unsafe equipment, (iii) without brake lights or a high mount stop light, (iv) without an exhaust system that prevents excessive or unusual levels of noise, (v) with certain sun-shading materials and tinting films, and (vi) with certain objects suspended in the vehicle, and the accompanying the exclusionary provisions. The bill also repeals the provision that provides that no law-enforcement officer may lawfully stop, search, or seize any person, place, or thing solely on the basis of the odor of marijuana and that no evidence discovered or obtained as a result of such unlawful search or seizure shall be admissible in any trial, hearing, or other proceeding.
02/07/22 House: Courts of Justice Committee incorporates HB 1030 into HB 79 by voice vote
Virginia NORML notes: HB 1030 will be incorporated into HB79, which was successfully amended to remove the language repealing § 4.1-1302 which provides that provides that no law-enforcement officer may lawfully stop, search, or seize any person, place, or thing solely on the basis of the odor of marijuana and that no evidence discovered or obtained as a result of such unlawful search or seizure shall be admissible in any trial, hearing, or other proceeding.
DEFEATED: SB 105 Law-enforcement officers; unlawful stops of motor vehicles.
Chief patron: Sen Joseph Morrissey R-19
Chapters 45 and 51 of the Acts of Assembly of 2020, Special Session I; retroactive and prospective effect. Provides that the provisions of Chapters 45 and 51 of the Acts of Assembly of 2020, Special Session I, shall be given retroactive and prospective effect.
03/02/22 House: Subcommittee recommends passing by indefinitely (5-Y 3-N)
Virginia NORML notes: This bill would ensure that for any pending court cases, that no evidence discovered or obtained as a result of unlawful search or seizure based solely on odor of marijuana shall be admissible. In some courts § 4.1-1302 is being applied retroactively, whereas in others it is not.
Employment
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 153 Unemployment/workers compensation; testing for the use of nonprescribed controlled substances.
Chief patron: Del Marie March R-7
Unemployment compensation and workers' compensation; testing for the use of nonprescribed controlled substances. Requires, for an applicant for unemployment benefits for whom the only suitable work available is in an occupation that regularly requires drug testing, the applicant, as a condition of eligibility, to provide the Virginia Employment Commission with the results of a drug test that is negative for the use of a nonprescribed controlled substance. The bill also requires, under the Workers' Compensation Act, in order to determine the cause of a workplace accident that harmed an employee, an employer to require post-accident drug testing for the use of a nonprescribed controlled substance of any employee whose conduct could have contributed to the accident. The bill also prohibits an insurer from providing premium discounts for a drug-free workplace to an employer unless the employer has policies in place requiring such post-accident drug testing.
02/15/22 House: Left in Commerce and Energy
Failed to advance for lack of a motion.
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 461 Employee protections; medicinal use of cannabis oil.
Chief patron: Del Dan Helmer D-40
Employee protections; medicinal use of cannabis oil. Amends the provision that prohibits an employer from discriminating against an employee for such employee's lawful use of cannabis oil under the laws of the Commonwealth. pursuant to a valid written certification issued by a practitioner for the treatment or to eliminate the symptoms of the employee's diagnosed condition or disease, with certain exceptions. Under the bill, employer includes the Commonwealth and any of its political subdivisions or agencies.
02/15/22 House: Left in Commerce and Energy
Virginia NORML notes: This bill is intended to improve and strengthen employment protections currently provided by law to registered medical cannabis patients.
CONTINUED: SB 702 Marijuana; criminal history information, disclosure to state & local governments by job applicants.
Chief patron: Sen Jennifer Kiggans R-7
Marijuana criminal history information; disclosure to state and local governments by job applicants. Allows the Commonwealth or a locality to require a job applicant or other applicant who is seeking a license, permit, registration, or other government service to disclose his prior criminal history for marijuana offenses. Under current law, the Commonwealth and its localities are prohibited from requiring the disclosure of such information for such purposes.
02/09/22 Senate: Continued to 2023 in Judiciary (13-Y 0-N)
Expungement
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 181 Criminal records; sealing of records; repeal.
Chief patron: Del Margaret Ransone R-99
Criminal records; sealing of records; repeal. Repeals provisions not yet effective allowing for the automatic and petition-based sealing of police and court records for certain convictions, deferred dispositions, and acquittals and for offenses that have been nolle prossed or otherwise dismissed.
02/15/22 House: Left in Courts of Justice
Virginia NORML notes: This bill proposes to reverse the progress toward automatically sealing records related to misdemeanor marijuana possession, misdemeanor marijuana possession with intent to distribute, and petition-based sealings for felony marijuana possession and paraphernalia. Virginia State Police have already spent $12.5M toward this process.
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 279 Criminal records; sealing of records by petition, criteria.
Chief patron: Del Carrie Coyner R-62
Criminal records; sealing of records by petition; criteria. Removes the requirement that a petitioner has not previously obtained the sealing of two other deferrals or convictions arising out of different sentencing events from the criteria that must be met for the court to enter an order requiring the sealing of the criminal history record information and court records related to certain convictions or charges that have been deferred or dismissed. The bill also adds convictions for driving on a suspended license and driving without a valid license to the list of convictions eligible for automatic sealing. Currently, such offenses are eligible for sealing upon petition. Also, for sealing of misdemeanor offenses by petition, the bill reduces from seven years to five years the period for which the person shall not have been convicted of any offense in order to be eligible for such sealing. The bill also specifies that the sealing of records related to a conviction includes the sealing of any criminal history record information and court records related to any violation of the terms and conditions of a suspended sentence or probation for such conviction.
02/15/22 House: Left in Courts of Justice
DEFEATED: SB 564 Criminal records; sealing of offenses resulting in a deferred & dismissed disposition or conviction
Chief patron: Sen Louise Lucas D-18
Sealing of offenses resulting in a deferred and dismissed disposition or conviction. Provides that a person shall not pay any fees or costs for filing a sealing criminal records petition. Under current law, a person is required to file an indigence petition for any fees or costs to be waived. The bill also eliminates the lifetime cap on the number of sealing petitions that may be filed. The bill reduces from seven years to three years for a misdemeanor offense and from 10 years to seven years for a felony offense the minimum period of time between the offense to be sealed and the filing of the sealing petition during which the petitioner must not have been convicted of violating any law of the Commonwealth. The bill also adds convictions for (i) failure to pay child support, (ii) driving without a license, (iii) driving with a suspended or revoked license, and (iv) a misdemeanor violation of reckless driving to the list of offenses eligible for an automatic sealing. The bill also specifies that the sealing of records related to a conviction includes sealing any criminal history record information and court records related to any violation of the terms and conditions of a suspended sentence or probation for such conviction.
03/04/22 House: Subcommittee recommends laying on the table (6-Y 2-N)
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: SB 742 Marijuana; expungement of offenses, civil penalty.
Chief patron: Sen Scott Surovell D-36
Expungement of offenses civil penalty. Provides for the automatic sealing of misdemeanor marijuana offenses and the petition-based sealing for certain felony marijuana offenses. The bill requires a business screening service, defined in the bill, to destroy all expunged records, as defined in the bill, and to follow reasonable procedures to ensure that it does not maintain or sell expunged records. The bill also provides that any petition for expungement shall be kept under seal and that an indigent person may file a petition for expungement without the payment of fees and costs and can request court-appointed counsel, who shall be paid from the Sealing Fee Fund. The bill has staggered delayed effective dates in order to develop systems for implementing the sealing provisions of the bill.
03/08/22 House: Left in Courts of Justice
Medical
SUCCEEDED: HB 933 Pharmaceutical processors.
Chief patron: Del Roxann Robinson R-27
Pharmaceutical processors. Amends the definition of "cannabis oil" by removing the requirement that only oil from industrial hemp be used in the formulation of cannabis oil. The bill requires the Board of Pharmacy to publish monthly on its website information including the number of practitioners, patients, registered agents, and parents or legal guardians of patients in each health service area who have registered with the Board, the number of written certifications issued, the number of pending applications for registrations, and the pace at which the Board is approving registrations. The bill directs the Board to promulgate numerous regulations related to pharmaceutical processors.
04/11/22 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 391 (effective 7/1/22)
Virginia NORML notes: This bill summary implies that medical cannabis products are currently made only from industrial hemp and that is not at all accurate. Virginia's medical cannabis companies, called ''pharmaceutical processors," are able to purchase extracts from VDACS-licensed industrial hemp companies if they so desire, but they are not limited to formulating their products from hemp. What this bill would actually do is make technical amendments to medical cannabis Code intended to improve processes for patients and processors.
SUCCEEDED: SB 671 Pharmaceutical processors; amends the definition of "cannabis oil."
Chief patron: Sen Siobhan Dunnavant R-12
Pharmaceutical processors. Amends the definition of "cannabis oil" by removing the requirement that only oil from industrial hemp be used in the formulation of cannabis oil. The bill requires the Board of Pharmacy to publish monthly on its website information including the number of practitioners, patients, registered agents, and parents or legal guardians of patients in each health service area who have registered with the Board, the number of written certifications issued, the number of pending applications for registrations, and the pace at which the Board is approving registrations. The bill directs the Board to promulgate numerous regulations related to pharmaceutical processors.
04/11/22 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 392 (effective 7/1/22)
Virginia NORML notes: This bill summary implies that medical cannabis products are currently made only from industrial hemp and that is not at all accurate. Virginia's medical cannabis companies, called ''pharmaceutical processors," are able to purchase extracts from VDACS-licensed industrial hemp companies if they so desire, but they are not limited to formulating their products from hemp. What this bill would actually do is make technical amendments to medical cannabis Code intended to improve processes for patients and processors and eliminate the requirement for patients to register with Boar dog Pharmacy after receiving the written certification. The bill is similar to HB 933.
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: SB 542 Board of Pharmacy; written certification for the use of cannabis products.
Chief patron: Sen David Marsden D-37
Board of Pharmacy; written certification for the use of cannabis products. Requires the Board of Pharmacy to provide a form for practitioners to issue as written certification for the use of cannabis products. Current law requires the Office of the Executive Secretary of the Supreme Court to provide the form.
03/08/22 House: Left in Health, Welfare and Institutions
Virginia NORML notes: This is a technical cleanup bill that would move the creation of the patient certification form to Board of Pharmacy from the Supreme Court. As the form was originally for an affirmative defense, the Supreme Court created it. The actions of these bills have been incorporated into SB 671, which has already succeeded; thus there is no need for them to advance to the floor.
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: SB 772 Cannabis; written certification for use.
Chief patron: Sen David Marsden D-37
Board of Pharmacy; cannabis registration. (No bill summary provided by LIS)
03/08/22 House: Left in Health, Welfare and Institutions
Virginia NORML notes: This bill would eliminate the patient registration process and require that the written certification issued by a registered practitioner serve as the qualifying documentation. The actions of these bills have been incorporated into SB 671, which has already succeeded; thus there is no need for them to advance to the floor.
Resentencing & Parole
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 280 Marijuana-related offenses; modification of sentence.
Chief patron: Del Carrie Coyner R-62
Modification of sentence for marijuana-related offenses. Creates a process by which persons convicted of certain felony marijuana-related offenses committed prior to July 1, 2021, who remain incarcerated or on community supervision on July 1, 2022, may receive an automatic hearing to consider modification of such person's sentence. The provisions of this bill sunset on July 1, 2024.
02/15/22 House: Left in Courts of Justice
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 1348 Marijuana-related offenses; creates writ of post-conviction relief.
Chief patron: Del Carrie Coyner R-62
Writ of post-conviction relief for marijuana-related offenses. Creates a writ of post-conviction relief by which persons convicted of certain felony marijuana-related offenses committed prior to July 1, 2021, who remain incarcerated on July 1, 2022, may petition the circuit court for modification of such person's sentence. The bill requires such petition to be filed by July 1, 2026. The bill has an expiration date of July 1, 2027.
02/15/22 House: Left in Courts of Justice
INCORPORATED: SB 518 Modification of sentence for marijuana related offenses.
Chief patron: Sen L. Louise Lucas D-18
Modification of sentence for marijuana related offenses. Creates a process by which persons convicted of certain felony marijuana-related offenses committed prior to July 1, 2021, who remain incarcerated or on community supervision on July 1, 2022, may receive an automatic hearing to consider modification of such person's sentence. The bill also allows persons convicted of any felony offense committed prior to July 1, 2021, who remain incarcerated or on community supervision on July 1, 2022, and whose sentence may have been enhanced because of a previous felony marijuana offense or without the involvement of marijuana such felony offense conviction or felony sentence enhancement would not have been possible, as the involvement of marijuana was necessary to satisfy the elements of the charged offense or the sentence enhancement, to petition the circuit court for modification of such person's sentence. The bill requires such petition to be filed by July 1, 2024. The provisions of this bill sunset on July 1, 2025.
02/07/22 Senate: Incorporated by Judiciary (SB745-Surovell) (15-Y 0-N)
DEFEATED: SB 745 Parole; exception to limitation on application of parole statutes, felony marijuana convictions.
Chief patron: Sen Scott Surovell D-36
Parole; exception to the limitation on the application of parole statutes; felony marijuana convictions.Provides that a person is eligible to be considered for parole if such person was convicted of certain felony marijuana offenses when such offense was committed on or after January 1, 1995, and the person was committed by a court to the Department of Corrections and remained incarcerated for such offense on July 1, 2022.
03/04/22 House: Committee on Appropriations
Committee votes on a party line 12-Y 10-N to lay the bill on the table, ending debate for the session
Testing
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 897 Hemp products; regulation.
Chief patron: Del Dawn Adams D-68
Regulated hemp products. Directs the Board of Directors of the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority to establish a scheme for the regulation of hemp products intended for smoking, edible hemp products, and topical hemp products.
02/15/22 House: Left in General Laws
Governor Northam Approves Expedited July 1 Enactment Date for Adult-Use Marijuana Legalization
Governor Ralph Northam announced amendments today to legislation (Senate Bill 1406 | House Bill 2312) establishing a statutory timeline for the legalization of marijuana possession, use, cultivation, and retail sales. Governor Northam recommended that provisions in the legislation legalizing the personal possession and personal cultivation of cannabis by adults take effect on July 1, 2021 rather than on January 1, 2024 -- the enactment date initially approved by lawmakers.
Should the legislature vote to approve the amendment, those ages 21 and older would be permitted to possess up to one ounce of marijuana and to cultivate up to four cannabis plants per household without penalty later this year. The legislature is set to reconvene on April 7 to accept or reject the proposed amendments.
Read moreGovernor Northam Approves Employment Protection Bill
Governor Ralph Northam has signed House Bill 1862 into law, which provides employment protections for state-registered medical cannabis patients.
The new law prohibits employers from discharging, disciplining, or otherwise discriminating against employees for their lawful use of medical cannabis while away from the job. The measure does not restrict an employer’s ability to impose sanctions upon employees if they are under the influence of cannabis while at work, nor does it limit an employers ability to restrict employees from possessing cannabis while at work. The new law takes effect July 1, 2021.
Read moreVirginia Legislature Approves Dispensing of Botanical Medical Cannabis
Virginia House of Delegates and Senate lawmakers have passed House Bill 2218 and Senate Bill 1333 amending the state’s medical cannabis program to allow for the production and dispensing of botanical cannabis. The bills await action from Governor Ralph Northam, who is expected to sign the measure into law.
Under the Commonwealth's existing medical cannabis law, licensed cultivators are required to process cannabis into extraction-based formulations, such as oils and tinctures. The new measure expands the pool of legal products to include those composed either of "cannabis oil or botanical cannabis."
Read moreWhere Key Virginia Marijuana Legislation Stands Ahead of Friday’s Crossover Deadline
Marijuana-related legislation has been front and center during Virginia’s short 2021 General Assembly, which began January 13. With the crossover deadline (when bills must be transmitted to the opposing chamber) fast approaching this Friday, multiple pieces of legislation addressing adult-use legalization, the expungement of past records, medical cannabis access expansion, and employment protections are advancing quickly. Below is a summary of where these various legislative efforts currently stand.
Read moreMarijuana-related legislation in the 2021 Virginia General Assembly Session
Click the bill title for the complete text and additional information.
Questions? Contact Virginia NORML at [email protected] or 804-464-7050 M-F 9-6.
Motions on bills
Lay the bill on the table Suspends debate of the bill. It can be recalled from the table later, but this rarely happens.
Pass the bill by indefinitely Ends debate of the bill. The bill has been killed and is dead for the session.
Report the bill Sends the bill to the House or Senate for a floor vote.
Refer or Rerefer Sends the bill to a Committee or Subcommittee.
Final Outcomes for Bills
| 0 | CONTINUED Bill will be taken up in the same Committee in the following year, but is done for this session | |
| 0 | DEFEATED Bill was defeated by vote and will not pass this session | |
| 4 | INCORPORATED Bill was incorporated into other similar and preferential bill | |
| 1 | LEFT IN COMMITTEE Bill was not heard by the Committee | |
| 8 | SUCCEEDED Bill passed both chambers by vote and has been sent to the Governor | |
| 0 | WITHDRAWN Bill patron withdrew the bill | |
| 0 | IN CONFERENCE Bill is in a committee of Senate and House members to reconcile a final version for approval |
Expungement
SUCCEEDED: HB 2113 Criminal records; establishes a process for automatic expungement, etc., report.
Chief patron: Del Charniele Herring D-46
Automatic expungement of criminal records; penalties. Establishes a process for the automatic expungement, defined in the bill, of criminal records for certain convictions, deferred dispositions, and acquittals and for offenses that have been nolle prossed or otherwise dismissed. The bill also provides a process for the automatic expungement of criminal records for charges arising from mistaken identity or the unauthorized use of identifying information. The bill has staggered delayed effective dates in order to develop systems for implementing the provisions of the bill. As introduced, this bill was a recommendation of the Virginia State Crime Commission.
04/07/21 House: House concurred in Governor's recommendation (60-Y 40-N)
INCORPORATED: SB 1283 Automatic expungement of criminal records.
Chief patron: Sen Joe Morrissey D-16
Automatic expungement of criminal records. Establishes a process for the automatic expungement of criminal records for misdemeanors, certain felony convictions, deferred dispositions, and acquittals and for offenses that have been nolle prossed or otherwise dismissed. The bill also provides a process for the automatic expungement of criminal records for charges arising from mistaken identity or the unauthorized use of identifying information. The bill has staggered delayed effective dates in order to develop systems for implementing the provisions of the bill.
02/01/21 Senate: Incorporated by Judiciary (13-Y 0-N) (SB1339-Surovell)
INCORPORATED: SB 1372 Criminal records; establishes a process for automatic expungement for certain convictions, report.
Chief patron: Sen Lousie Lucas D-18
Automatic expungement of criminal records. Establishes a process for the automatic expungement, defined in the bill, of criminal records for certain convictions, deferred dispositions, and acquittals and for offenses that have been nolle prossed or otherwise dismissed. The bill also provides a process for the automatic expungement of criminal records for charges arising from mistaken identity or the unauthorized use of identifying information. The bill has staggered delayed effective dates in order to develop systems for implementing the provisions of the bill.
02/01/21 Senate: Incorporated by Judiciary (14-Y 0-N) (SB1339-Surovell)
SUCCEEDED: SB 1339 Police and court records; expungement and sealing of records, Expungement Fee Fund created.
Chief patron: Sen Scott Surovell D-36
Expungement and sealing of police and court records; Expungement Fee Fund created; protection of public record information; penalties. Establishes a process for the sealing of police and court records, defined in the bill, of criminal records for certain convictions, deferred dispositions, and acquittals and for offenses that have been nolle prossed or otherwise dismissed. The bill also allows a person to petition for the expungement of the police and court records relating to convictions of marijuana possession, underage alcohol or tobacco possession, and using a false ID to obtain alcohol and for deferred disposition dismissals for possession of controlled substances or marijuana, underage alcohol or tobacco possession, and using a false ID to obtain alcohol.
The bill creates the Expungement Fee Fund, which is funded by all collected expungement fees. The bill provides that expungement fees shall not be refundable, but persons who are indigent or represented by court-appointed counsel shall not be required to pay such fees. The Fund is administered by the Executive Secretary of the Supreme Court and used to fund the costs of court-appointed counsel.
The bill requires a business screening service, which is a business that conducts criminal history records searches, must register with the Department of State Police to receive expungement orders and must follow reasonable procedures to ensure it maintains accurate information. The bill directs the Attorney General to enforce these requirements, authorizing it to file suit for damages and a civil penalty of up to $2,500.
With the exception of the provisions regarding the Expungement Fee Fund, and the funding provisions of such fund, the bill has delayed effective date of July 1, 2022. The bill directs the Department of Criminal Justice Services to adopt emergency regulations to implement the provisions of the bill. The provisions of the bill are contingent on funding in a general appropriation act. This bill incorporates SB 1283 and SB 1372.
04/07/21 Senate: Senate concurred in Governor's recommendation (22-Y 18-N)
Legalization
INCORPORATED: HB 1815 Marijuana; legalization of cultivation, manufacture, sale, possession, and testing, penalties.
Chief patron: Del Steve Heretick D-79
Marijuana; legalization of cultivation, manufacture, sale, possession, and testing; penalties. Establishes a regulatory scheme for the regulation of marijuana cultivation facilities, marijuana manufacturing facilities, marijuana testing facilities, and retail marijuana stores by the Board of Agriculture and Consumer Services. The bill also grants localities the authority to enact ordinances establishing additional licensing requirements for marijuana establishments located within such locality and allows the home cultivation of marijuana for personal use under certain circumstances. The bill imposes a tax on retail marijuana and retail marijuana products sold by a retail marijuana store at a rate of 9.7 percent (for a total sales tax of 15 percent) and provides that 67 percent of the revenues collected from the tax be deposited into the general fund and 33 percent of the revenues be deposited into a "Retail Marijuana Education Support Fund" to be used solely for purposes of public education. Finally, the bill establishes several new criminal penalties related to marijuana, as well as modifies some existing criminal penalties.
01/26/21 House: Subcommittee recommends incorporating (HB2312-Herring) by voice vote
SUCCEEDED: HB 2312 Marijuana; legalization of simple possession; penalties.
Chief patron: Del Charniele Herring D-46
Marijuana; legalization; retail sales; penalties. Eliminates criminal penalties for simple possession of marijuana, modifies several other criminal penalties related to marijuana, and provides for an automatic expungement process for those convicted of certain marijuana-related crimes to have such crimes automatically expunged by July 1, 2026. The bill creates the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority (the Authority) and establishes a regulatory structure for the cultivation, manufacture, wholesale, and retail sale of retail marijuana and retail marijuana products, to be administered by the Authority. The bill contains social equity provisions that, among other things, provide support and resources to persons and communities that have been historically and disproportionately affected by drug enforcement. The bill has staggered effective dates and allows retail marijuana sales to begin on January 1, 2024. This bill incorporates HB 1815. See H. B. 2312 General Laws Substitute PDF text.
04/07/21 House: House concurred in Governor's recommendation (53-Y 44-N 2-A)
LEFT IN COMMITTEE: HB 2315 Local referendum on the legalization of marijuana.
Chief patron: Del Danny Marshall R-14
Local referendum on the legalization of marijuana. Provides that the qualified voters of a locality or supervisor's election district of a county may file a petition with the circuit court of the county or city asking that a referendum be held on the question of whether the legalization of marijuana should be prohibited within that jurisdiction. The petition shall be signed by qualified voters equal in number to at least 10 percent of the number registered in the locality or supervisor's election district on January 1 preceding its filing or at least 100 qualified voters, whichever is greater. The question on the ballot shall be:
"Shall the legalization of marijuana be prohibited in __________ (name of locality or supervisor's election district of county)?"
The referendum shall be ordered and held and the results certified, and thereupon the court shall enter of record an order certified by the clerk of the court to be transmitted to the governing body of the locality. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the legalization of marijuana shall be prohibited within the locality or supervisor's election district of a county on or after 30 days following the entry of the order if a majority of the voters voting in the referendum have voted "Yes." The bill shall become effective on July 1, 2023.
The bill also directs the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) to evaluate the potential retail sale of marijuana products in localities that have not prohibited the legalization of marijuana. DHCD specifically shall study the details of who should be allowed to establish such retail operations, the procedure to be followed by localities, and where the retail establishments shall be permitted. The study shall be conducted between July 1, 2022, and November 30, 2022, with the goal of making recommendations and proposing legislation to the 2023 Session of the General Assembly.
02/05/21 House: Left in Courts of Justice
INCORPORATED: SB 1243 Marijuana; legalization of cultivation, manufacture, sale, possession, and testing; penalties.
Chief patron: Sen Joe Morrissey D-16
Marijuana; legalization of cultivation, manufacture, sale, possession, and testing; penalties. Establishes a regulatory scheme for the regulation of marijuana cultivation facilities, marijuana manufacturing facilities, marijuana testing facilities, and retail marijuana stores by the Board of Agriculture and Consumer Services. The bill also grants localities the authority to enact ordinances establishing additional licensing requirements for marijuana establishments located within such locality and allows the home cultivation of marijuana for personal use under certain circumstances. The bill imposes a tax on retail marijuana and retail marijuana products sold by a retail marijuana store at a rate of 9.7 percent (for a total sales tax of 15 percent) and provides that 67 percent of the revenues collected from the tax be deposited into the general fund and 33 percent of the revenues be deposited into a "Retail Marijuana Education Support Fund" to be used solely for purposes of public education. The bill establishes several new criminal penalties related to marijuana as well as modifies some existing criminal penalties. The bill requires the automatic expungement of records relating to the arrest, charge, conviction, adjudication or civil offense of a person for a misdemeanor violation of distribution or possession with intent to distribute marijuana and for a violation of possession of marijuana by July 1, 2022, or if, on July 1, 2022, the person who is the subject of the arrest, charge, conviction, adjudication, or civil offense has not completed all terms of sentencing and probation, including satisfaction of all court costs and fines and all orders of restitution, by three months after the date of completion of all terms of sentencing and probation. Finally, the bill permits any person who is convicted or adjudicated delinquent of a felony violation of distribution or possession with intent to distribute marijuana or charged with such violation which charge is deferred and dismissed, to petition for expungement of such charge, conviction, or adjudication under certain circumstances.
01/22/21 Senate: Incorporated by Rehabilitation and Social Services (SB1406-Ebbin) (9-Y 3-N)
SUCCEEDED: SB 1406 Marijuana; legalization of simple possession; penalties.
Chief patrons: Sen Adam Ebbin D-30 and Sen Louise Lucas D-18
Marijuana; legalization; retail sales; penalties. Eliminates criminal penalties for simple possession of marijuana, modifies several other criminal penalties related to marijuana, and provides for an automatic expungement process for those convicted of certain marijuana-related crimes. The bill creates the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority (the Authority) and establishes a regulatory structure for the cultivation, manufacture, wholesale, and retail sale of retail marijuana and retail marijuana products, to be administered by the Authority. The bill contains social equity provisions that, among other things, provide support and resources to persons and communities that have been historically and disproportionately affected by drug enforcement. The bill has staggered effective dates and allows retail marijuana sales to begin on January 1, 2024. Certain provisions of the bill do not become effective unless reenacted by the 2022 Session of the General Assembly. This bill incorporates SB 1243. See S. B. 1406 Rehabilitation Substitute PDF text.
04/07/21 Senate: Senate concurred in Governor's recommendation (20-Y 20-N)
04/07/21 Senate: Chair votes Yes
Medical
SUCCEEDED: HB 1862 Employee protections; medicinal use of cannabis oil.
Chief patron: Del Dan Helmer D-40
Employee protections; medicinal use of cannabis oil. Prohibits an employer from discharging, disciplining, or discriminating against an employee for such employee's lawful use of cannabis oil pursuant to a valid written certification issued by a practitioner for the treatment or to eliminate the symptoms of the employee's diagnosed condition or disease. The bill provides that such prohibition does not (i) restrict an employer's ability to take any adverse employment action for any work impairment caused by the use of cannabis oil or to prohibit possession during work hours or (ii) require an employer to commit any act that would cause the employer to be in violation of federal law or that would result in the loss of a federal contract or federal funding.
03/25/21 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 395 (effective 7/1/21)
SUCCEEDED: HB 1988 Cannabis oil; processing and dispensing by pharmaceutical processors.
Chief patron: Del Dawn Adams D-68
Board of Pharmacy; pharmaceutical processors; processing and dispensing cannabis oil; report. Effects numerous changes to the processing and dispensing of cannabis oil by pharmaceutical processors in the Commonwealth. The bill allows written certifications for use of cannabis oil to include an electronic practitioner signature. The bill also eliminates the requirement that a pharmacist have oversight of the cultivation and processing areas of a pharmaceutical processor, instead requiring pharmaceutical processors to designate a person to oversee cultivation and production areas; removes the requirement that a cannabis dispensing facility undergo quarterly inspections, instead requiring that inspections occur no more than once annually; and allows pharmaceutical processors to remediate cannabis oil that fails any quality testing standard. The bill requires pharmaceutical processors to maintain evidence of criminal background checks for all employees and delivery agents of the pharmaceutical processor. The bill directs the Board of Pharmacy to promulgate regulations implementing the provisions of the bill and regulations creating reasonable restrictions on advertising and promotion by pharmaceutical processors by July 1, 2021, and directs the Board of Pharmacy to solicit input from stakeholders and appropriate agencies of the Commonwealth in order to develop recommendations for legislative action to permit the acceptance of cannabis products by hospices and hospice facilities in the Commonwealth and report its findings and recommendations to the Chairmen of the House Committee on Health, Welfare and Institutions and the Senate Committee on Education and Health by October 1, 2021.
03/18/21 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 205 (effective 7/1/21)
SUCCEEDED: HB 2218 Pharmaceutical processors; permits processors to produce & distribute cannabis products.
Chief patron: Del Cliff Hayes D-77
Pharmaceutical processors; cannabis products. Permits pharmaceutical processors to produce and distribute cannabis products other than cannabis oil. The bill defines the terms "botanical cannabis," "cannabis product," and "usable cannabis." The bill requires the Board of Pharmacy to establish testing standards for botanical cannabis and botanical cannabis products, establish a registration process for botanical cannabis products, and promulgate emergency regulations to implement the provisions of the bill. The bill allows the Board of Pharmacy to assess and collect a one-time botanical cannabis regulatory fee from each pharmaceutical processor, not to exceed $75,000, to cover costs associated with the implementation of the provisions of the bill, including costs for new personnel, training, promulgation of regulations and guidance documents, and information technology.
03/18/21 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 227 (effective 7/1/21)
SUCCEEDED: SB 1333 Pharmaceutical processors; permits processors to produce & distribute cannabis products.
Chief patron: Sen Louise Lucas D-18
Pharmaceutical processors; cannabis products. Permits pharmaceutical processors to produce and distribute cannabis products other than cannabis oil. The bill defines the terms "botanical cannabis," "cannabis product," and "usable cannabis." The bill requires the Board of Pharmacy to establish testing standards for botanical cannabis and botanical cannabis products, establish a registration process for botanical cannabis products, and promulgate emergency regulations to implement the provisions of the bill. The bill allows the Board of Pharmacy to assess and collect botanical cannabis regulatory fees to cover costs associated with the implementation of the provisions of the bill, including costs for new personnel, training, promulgation of regulations and guidance documents, and information technology.
03/18/21 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 228 (effective 7/1/21)