Connecticut is slated to become the latest state in the U.S. to legalize, tax and regulate cannabis for adults 21 and older.
On Thursday, lawmakers passed an adult-use cannabis bill and Governor Ned Lamont said he would sign so the state could move beyond “this terrible period of incarceration and injustice.”
“The war on cannabis, which was at its core a war on people in Black and Brown communities, not only caused injustices and increased disparities in our state, it did little to protect public health and safety,” Governor Lamont said in a statement. “It will help eliminate the dangerous unregulated market and support a new, growing sector of our economy which will create jobs.”
The new law legalizes possession and cultivation of marijuana for adults 21 and older. It will also expunge low-level criminal records related to marijuana. Most of the tax revenue generated from adult-use sales will go communities disproportionately impacted by cannabis prohibition and half of the state’s adult-use licenses will be issued to social equity applicants, a provision that New York state incorporated into its law in March.
Connecticut legalized medical marijuana in 2014 and the country’s largest cannabis companies, including Curaleaf, Green Thumb Industries and Trulieve all have footprints in the state.
According to a report Cowen published in April, Connecticut’s cannabis market is expected to grow from $143 million in sales in 2020 to $164 million by the end of this year. Governor Lamont has said that adult-use sales will launch in May 2022.
Analysis by cannabis trade publication MJBizDaily projects that the Connecticut market could reach $725 million in annual sales by the end of 2025.
Connecticut’s move to create a legal recreational marijuana market makes good financial sense for the state’s coffers. In the first five years of adult-use sales, Connecticut could bring in more than $600 million in tax revenue. It is also sandwiched between states that have already passed recreational marijuana laws—Massachusetts and New York. Rhode Island is also expected to pass recreational cannabis laws soon and New Jersey and Vermont also have adult-use laws.
“The states surrounding us already, or soon will, have legal adult-use markets,” said Government Lamont. “By allowing adults to possess cannabis, regulating its sale …we’re not only effectively modernizing our laws and addressing inequities, we’re keeping Connecticut economically competitive with our neighboring states.”
Even the United Food and Commercial Workers union in Connecticut applauded the passage of the bill. “Connecticut working families need an economy that puts them first. With this bill, Connecticut can create thousands of good-paying cannabis jobs that will strengthen our communities and help to speed our economic recovery as we emerge from the pandemic,” UFCW Local 371 President Ronald Petronella and UFCW Local 919 President Mark Espinosa said in a joint statement.
Starting in November 2020, a wave of states passed adult-use laws. On Election Day, Arizona, Montana and New Jersey legalized recreational cannabis. (In South Dakota, where voters passed medical and adult-use on Election Day, the Governor is attempting to overturn the will of the people.) This year, New York, New Mexico and Virginia all passed adult-use laws through legislation, which means Connecticut is the fourth state to legalize through the legislature.
“This year has shown us that state legislatures are capable of rising to the challenge to end cannabis prohibition,” Karen O’Keefe, director of state policies for the Marijuana Policy Project, said in a statement. “A supermajority of Americans have made it clear that they favor a system of legalization and regulation rather than the status quo. This victory will add to the momentum towards cannabis policy reform in other states and at the federal level.”
About 70% of Americans support the legalization of marijuana and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has promised that he and Sens. Cory Booker and Ron Wyden will introduce their cannabis legalization bill.
Boris Jordan, the billionaire chairman of Curaleaf, said that the senators’ bill should be expected soon.
“We are told that the Booker, Schumer, Wyden bill introduction (that is holistic cannabis legalization) will be introduced in July,” Jordan wrote on Twitter. “Curaleaf is fully committed to help Leader Schumer pass this important legislation to move our industry—and our country—forward!”
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Connecticut To Become 18th State To Legalize Adult-Use Cannabis - Forbes
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