By New Hampshire Democrats and Republicans are gearing up for another effort to legalize marijuana, but the governor doesn’t think they’ll succeed.
The latest cannabis bill being introduced in the New Hampshire legislature has received support from members of both parties, and the proposal was considered at a hearing in the state House of Representatives Commerce Committee on Wednesday. According to New Hampshire Public Radio.
Republicans control New Hampshire’s government and hold majorities in both the state Senate and the state House of Representatives.
Governor Chris Sununu is also a Republican.
As was the case last year, the proposal exposed divisions within the New Hampshire Republican Party when another marijuana legalization was considered.
According to New Hampshire Public Radio, the House of Representatives has “repeatedly endorsed plans to legalize marijuana,” but the Republican-led state Senate is not participating.
Meanwhile, Sununu is another obstacle to the bill.
“I’ve always said now is not the time. Different states do things very differently. I’ve always wanted to see what works and what doesn’t,” Sununu said last year. “There may be a way to do it, but given the opioid crisis we’re in, we don’t yet know what will work in other states,” he said at the governor’s debate. And it may be inevitable.You do it and follow the steps best for New Hampshire.
On Wednesday, Sununu’s office denied the prospect of the latest legalization bill.
“It failed repeatedly in the Senate, both in Republican and Democrat years,” the governor’s office said. Quoted by New Hampshire Public Radio“With teenage drug use and overdoses on the rise, it is not expected that Congress will see this as the time to ignore the data and move forward.”
However, Sununu supports other cannabis-related reforms.
According to Associated Press, “Sununu has signed legislation to decriminalize small amounts of marijuana, expand access to medical marijuana, and create a system to void old convictions for possession of marijuana,” but “recreational marijuana.” A bill to legalize its use never reached his desk.”
“Governor Sununu has done more on marijuana reform issues than any other governor in New Hampshire’s history.” Said AP.
The bill was introduced last month by two senior members of the state House of Representatives, House Majority Leader Jason Osborne and House Democratic Leader Matt Wilhelm.
“The House has been united for a long time to find a way to make this happen for the Granite Staters,” Osborne said at the time. “With any luck, the Senate will endorse the will of the majority of New Hampshire citizens.”
On Wednesday, Osborne resisted introducing the bill before the House Commerce Committee.
“What you are seeing is the result of months of work by an entire coalition of groups and advocates, from the business side to the consumer side, from the civil rights side to the economic freedom side, to the recovery community. and people concerned with child safety,” Osborne said at the hearing. As quoted by the Associated Press“It’s time to get something done.”
Associated Press report “Coalitions including New Hampshire’s ACLU and conservative Americans for Prosperity support bipartisan legislation that would legalize drugs, regulate and tax retail, and allow them to be grown in the country.” Marijuana Sales Proceeds from the “will help reduce the state’s pension burden, with a portion going to substance abuse prevention programs and other groups.”
