Virginia Governor Vetoes Recreational Marijuana Market Bill
Virginia’s Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin has vetoed legislation that would have created a state-regulated market for the sale of recreational marijuana.
The proposed law, which passed the state legislature last month, aimed to establish a legal marketplace for adult-use cannabis sales starting in May 2025.
In his veto statement, Youngkin argued that legalizing a commercial marijuana industry endangers Virginians’ health and safety.
“States following this path have seen adverse effects on children’s and adolescent’s health and safety, increased gang activity and violent crime, significant deterioration in mental health, decreased road safety, and significant costs associated with retail marijuana that far exceed tax revenue,” Youngkin said.
The vetoed bill was set to allow Virginia to begin accepting business applications on September 1 for cultivation, testing, and retail sales of recreational marijuana. This came nearly three years after the state legalized personal possession and cultivation of cannabis for adults aged 21 and over.
However, policymakers have disagreed on establishing a legal commercial market, leaving unregulated sales ongoing in Virginia according to critics. Youngkin had previously been non-committal on the issue, saying it was not an area of priority for his administration.
Along with the marijuana marketplace veto, the governor rejected six other bills on Thursday. His office stated these would “legalize the sale of drugs, weaken public safety and arbitrarily set labor prices.”
One rejected bill aimed to provide resentencing relief for certain past cannabis convictions. Had it passed, it would have required marijuana-related criminal cases to be resentenced by the end of this year, and by April 1 of next year for people whose sentences for other crimes were impacted by previous convictions for marijuana.
This bill, Youngkin says, would “eligibility to a significant number of violent felons who have already received a full and fair hearing.”
“Now is not the time to allow an imprudent resentencing process that undermines public safety,” he added.
Information for this story was found via AP News, Politico, and the sources and companies mentioned. The author has no securities or affiliations related to the organizations discussed. Not a recommendation to buy or sell. Always do additional research and consult a professional before purchasing a security. The author holds no licenses.
What _really_ endangers Virginians’ safety is when a Hedge fund capitalist becomes governor with his own money, promoting himself as a ‘freedom supporter,’ – even initially passing laws to give freedoms from mandates to state employees and schools – only to veto recreational Cannabis with this lame excuse. Maybe the self-replicating nanotech colonies crowded out the Ophiuchus’ (Sagittarius’) – natural ability of our zodiac sign to discern and love folks – from the bigger picture. A shameful decision – if one considers the _actual harmlessness_ of Cannabis. Plus, what kind of millionaire capitalist would make such a dumb financial decision – one with teenage daughters he _doesn’t_ want to “think outside of the box”? A low choice.