FRIDLEY, Minn. — In the latest push to legalize marijuana in Minnesota, DFL lawmakers unveiled a newly proposed bill Thursday that would legalize the use of recreational cannabis.
"Our bill will create a safe, well-regulated legal marketplace where Minnesotans can grow, sell and buy cannabis if they choose to do so," said the bill's co-author, Rep. Zack Stephenson.
The bill outlines several regulatory measures including setting an age requirement to 21 and older, limiting the amount carried in public to 2 ounces, and only allowing 5 pounds in a private residence.
Concerns which Paul Aasen, president of the Minnesota Safety Council says need to be of top priority. The council is also working in partnership with Minnesotans Against Marijuana Legalization.
"It needs to consider the impacts on traffic safety. You can't measure impairment from marijuana like you can with alcohol," said Aasen. He went on to explain, "You're also going to have to take a look to law enforcement and ask them, 'Do you have the resources to deal with managing an illegal market?'"
Regulatory practices that edibles and THC sales professionals like Jeff Taylor, CEO of Beezwax, is in favor of.
"By regulating this, you eliminate the black market because people can only buy amounts that are enough for them or maybe them and one other person, not a hundred people," explained Taylor.
For Taylor, regulated testing of the products is the bigger issue.
"Knowing what's in your product, when you're buying something off the street, we know that we have a national problem with drugs and with fentanyl and other things, where if you come to a place like our establishment, we've had COA's done. What that means is, we've had testing done on our products. We know exactly what's in our product."
"We're just really hoping that the state will go through a full dialog about this before we make a choice like we did decades ago on alcohol," said Aasen.
For industry experts like Taylor, the health benefits of legalizing marijuana, outweigh the negative publicity of passing legislation to legalize it.
“I have seen probably a number of people that I’ve taken off of Percocet, Vicodin, oxycodone, heroin, sleeping pills, melatonin," said Taylor.
Democrats hold a one-vote majority in the Senate, which means every Democrat would need to vote in favor of the bill in order for it to pass.
Senate Minority Leader Mark Johnson (R- East Grand Forks) released the following statement in response to the DFL proposal to legalize marijuana in Minnesota:
Concerns about the full legalization of marijuana should not be rushed. We need to hear from law enforcement, employers, addiction counselors, educators, and others who have concerns about legalizing marijuana. We know that even small changes in this area of law can lead to huge changes in the market and in people's practices. We don't take the risks that marijuana poses to youth, minorities, and the vulnerable, lightly. The Senate DFL will need to decide if they want to rush this process to keep their political partners happy or take their time to decide if full-blown legalization is the right thing for Minnesota.
The first public hearing on the bill is scheduled for Jan. 11 in the House Commerce Committee.
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