Shortly after Delaware’s Senate voted to pass a bill to legalize marijuana possession, they passed a separate bill to establish a legal marijuana industry.
House Bill 2 was passed by the Senate in a 15 to 5 vote, a little less than an hour and a half after the chamber approved House Bill 1 by a vote of 16 to 4.
House Bill 1 legalizes the possession of up to an ounce of marijuana for those 21 and older, while House Bill 2 establishes a regulated and taxed system of licensed marijuana retail outlets, supplied by licensed producers. Both bills have already been passed by the House of Representatives with just 13 of 41 members voting “No”.
The proposal will now be sent to the desk of Governor John Carney. Governor Carney has made it clear he opposes the legalization of marijuana, but giving hope to proponents of the bill Representative Osiensky says he’s “optimistic” that the legislature has enough support to override a potential veto, which can be done with a 2/3rds majority.
Under House Bill 2 The Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Enforcement would be charged with regulating the marijuana industry through a new Office of Marijuana Control Commissioner. Marijuana would be taxed at 15% for recreational marijuana and would remain tax-free for medical marijuana.
On the Senate floor prior to its passage Senator Trey Parade said House Bill 2 “creates a new industry with good paying jobs while striking a blow to the illegal marijuana market that’s providing marijuana of dubious quality while supplying funds to criminals and cartels.”
Prior to the passage of House Bill 1, Senator Parade said that “the older generation that was fed Reefer Madness lies and propaganda, is beginning to understand what the younger generational already knows – marijuana by any measure is far less harmful than alcohol, not as addictive as caffeine and nicotine, and does not cause anywhere near the harmful side effects or astronomical health-related cost and consequences of tobacco and nicotine.”
Although two amendments to House Bill 2 were introduced during the Senate debate, they were both rejected, both by votes of 5 to 16.
The proposal will now be sent to the desk of Governor John Carney. Governor Carney has made it clear he opposes the legalization of marijuana, but giving hope to proponents of the bill Representative Osiensky says he’s “optimistic” that the legislature has enough support to override a potential veto, which can be done with a 2/3rds majority.
