{"id":8016,"date":"2018-01-22T21:22:53","date_gmt":"2018-01-22T21:22:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com?p=2927365&amp;preview_id=2927365"},"modified":"2018-01-22T21:22:53","modified_gmt":"2018-01-22T21:22:53","slug":"its-official-vermont-becomes-9th-state-to-legalize-recreational-marijuana","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/its-official-vermont-becomes-9th-state-to-legalize-recreational-marijuana\/","title":{"rendered":"It\u2019s official: Vermont becomes 9th state to legalize recreational marijuana"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"wp_fb_like_button\" style=\"margin:5px 0 5px 5px;float:right;height:100px;\"><script src=\"http:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/all.js#xfbml=1\"><\/script><fb:like href=\"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/its-official-vermont-becomes-9th-state-to-legalize-recreational-marijuana\/\" send=\"true\" layout=\"standard\" width=\"450\" show_faces=\"false\" font=\"arial\" action=\"like\" colorscheme=\"light\"><\/fb:like><\/div><div class=\"media_block\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"row\">\n<div class=\"large-10 large-centered small-12 columns\">\n<div class=\"entry-meta-date\">Published: Jan 22, 2018, 12:47 pm \u2022 Updated: Jan 22, 2018, 1:15 pm <span class=\"single-comments-link\" \/><\/div>\n<p class=\"byline\">By <span class=\"author\"><a class=\"url fn n\" href=\"http:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/author\/awallace\/\" rel=\"author\">Alicia Wallace<\/a><\/span><em>, The Cannabist Staff<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Vermont on Monday became the ninth U.S. state to legalize recreational marijuana and the first to do so via a legislative act.<\/p>\n<p>Gov. Phil Scott signed H. 511, a bill allowing for adults to possess and cultivate small amounts of cannabis, <a href=\"http:\/\/governor.vermont.gov\/press-release\/governor-phil-scott-signs-h-511\">according to an announcement posted by his office<\/a>. The bill, however, does not establish a system to tax and regulate the sale of cannabis.<\/p>\n<p>Over the weekend, there was some <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/2018\/01\/21\/vermont-marijuana-legalization-scott-sign-sunday\/97216\/\">confusion as to whether or not Scott had signed the bill<\/a>. In a statement Monday, he said he signed H. 511 \u201cwith mixed emotions.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs I said when I vetoed S. 22 in May, I personally believe that what adults do behind closed doors and on private property is their choice, so long as it does not negatively impact the health and safety of others, especially children,\u201d Scott said in a statement. \u201cIn this context, it is very important to understand what H. 511 does and does not do.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhile this legislation decriminalizes, for adults 21 and older, personal possession of no more than 1 ounce, and cultivation of two mature plants on their private property, marijuana remains a controlled substance in Vermont and its sale is prohibited. Also, consumption of marijuana in public places is prohibited. Consumption of marijuana by operators and passengers in a motor vehicle is prohibited. Schools, employers, municipalities and landlords are also empowered to adopt policies and ordinances further restricting the cultivation and use.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Scott said he has reservations about implementing a commercial system that \u201cdepends on profit motive and market-driven demand for its growth.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I look forward to the Marijuana Advisory Commission addressing the need to develop comprehensive education, prevention and highway safety strategies,\u201d Scott said. \u201cTo be very direct: There must be comprehensive and convincing plans completed in these areas before I will begin to consider the wisdom of implementing a commercial \u2018tax and regulate\u2019 system for an adult marijuana market. It is important for the General Assembly to know that \u2014 until we have a workable plan to address each of these concerns \u2014 I will veto any additional effort along these lines, which manages to reach my desk.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/2017\/05\/24\/vermont-marijuana-legalization-governor-phil-scott-veto\/80190\/\">Scott vetoed<\/a>\u00a0an earlier version of H.511. He felt his concerns were then addressed\u00a0in the revised <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/2018\/01\/10\/vermont-marijuana-recreational-senate-vote\/96455\/\">legislation that passed<\/a>\u00a0earlier this month.<\/p>\n<p>Legalization advocacy firm Marijuana Policy Project hailed the new law for removing fines and criminal penalties for \u201clow-level marijuana possession and cultivation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is a great step forward for the state and the whole region,\u201d Matt Simon, political director for Marijuana Policy Project\u2019s New England region. \u201cResponsible adults will soon have the freedom to enjoy a safer option legally, and law enforcement will be free to concentrate on serious crimes with actual victims.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Legalization opponents say they see Vermont\u2019s H. 511 as a potential compromise \u2014 as it stops short of allowing regulated sales.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe will await the final report from the Governor\u2019s Marijuana Commission,\u201d officials for the Alexandra, Va.-based Smart Approaches to Marijuana said in a statement. \u201cAfter reading the preliminary report released on Jan. 16, we feel confident that the Departments of Health and Public Safety share our concerns with full legalization and support the need for a cautious approach.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"entry-meta-author\">\n<div class=\"authorimage\"><a class=\"url fn n\" href=\"http:\/\/www.thecannabist.co\/author\/awallace\/\" rel=\"author\"><img src=\"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/its-official-vermont-becomes-9th-state-to-legalize-recreational-marijuana.jpg\" class=\"authormug\" \/><\/a><\/div>\n<p class=\"author-desc\">Alicia Wallace joined The Cannabist in July 2016, covering national marijuana policy and business. In her 14 years as a business news reporter, her coverage has spanned topics such as the economy, natural foods, airlines, biotech, retail,&#8230;<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><!-- .row --> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"media_block\"><\/div>\n<p>The Green Mountain State on Monday became the ninth U.S. state to legalize recreational marijuana and the first to do so via a legislative act. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[6813,77,6858,9,6833,6855,5019,441,1,3,304,61,1736],"tags":[6818,2655,6860,6835,6856,5022,3015,2882],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8016"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8016"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8016\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8016"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8016"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8016"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}