A coalition of marijuana reform organizations, businesses, advocates and law enforcement voices will send a letter tomorrow to Governor Spanberger urging her to allow legislation establishing a regulated adult-use marijuana market to take effect July 1.

“We write to urge you to allow SB 542, HB 642, and the related enforcement legislation, SB 543, to take effect on July 1”, begins the letter. “Together, these bills address the real issues surrounding cannabis in the Commonwealth today: an already-existing, unregulated marijuana market operating openly across the state while consumers, communities, and law enforcement are left without the protections of a legal framework.”

The letter goes on to say “Let’s be clear: these bills do not create a marijuana market in Virginia. That market already exists. What these bills do is replace today’s predatory and unaccountable illicit operators with a regulated marketplace, enforceable rules, oversight, product safeguards, age verification, and the strict consumer safety standards already in use for Virginia medical cannabis.”

The letter also points to years of work by lawmakers, regulators and stakeholders, including the 2020 Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission report, Governor Ralph Northam’s Marijuana Legalization Work Group, the Cannabis Oversight Commission, the Joint Commission to Oversee the Transition of the Commonwealth into a Retail Cannabis Market, and advisory bodies within the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority.

SB 543, the coalition argues, is especially important because enforcement is most effective when paired with a regulated market. The letter says delaying legal sales while calling for stronger enforcement would preserve the current disorder, rather than addressing it.

The letter is signed by Arminitia Cannabis Education, Greener Things, Healing Seed VA, Hemp House Wellness, Jushi, Law Enforcement Action Partnership, Marijuana Justice, Marijuana Policy Project, NORML, Nolef Turns, Peace, Dr. Michelle, Ph.D., RVA Cannabis Co., Virginia Cannabis Association, Virginia Minority Cannabis Coalition and Virginia NORML.

Virginia legalized possession of up to one ounce of marijuana for adults 21 and older in 2021, but the state has yet to launch adult-use sales. As a result, possession and home cultivation are legal for adults, while recreational retail stores remain unavailable.