By Matt Bittle

DOVER — For cannabis advocates, Thursday had the potential to be a historic day.

The House of Representatives was set to vote on a measure that would legalize marijuana for adults, seeking to make Delaware the 18th state to allow recreational pot. But a few hours before the chamber went into session, the main sponsor announced there would be no vote that day.

“House Bill 150 is an extremely important piece of legislation with many complicated moving parts,” Rep. Ed Osienski, D-Newark, said in a statement. “In recent days, a number of amendments have been filed by myself and other legislators that would make significant changes to the bill as written. Accordingly, my colleagues and I need time to consider the implications of these various amendments before bringing the bill to the House floor for a vote.

“This is one piece of legislation that we have to get right, and I encourage my fellow legislators, advocates and supporters of the bill to please be patient as we continue to work toward the goal of legalizing marijuana for adult recreational use in Delaware.”

The news left a bitter taste in some supporters’ mouths, but they can take heart that the bill is not dead. It could be voted on as soon as this upcoming Thursday, and even if it does not become law by the time the General Assembly breaks for the year at the end of the month, the legislation can be picked up where it was left off when lawmakers return in January.

House Bill 150 would let individuals age 21 and older buy up to 1 ounce of marijuana from licensed retail stores. The legislation would establish a 15% tax, though retailers would otherwise be able to set their own prices. Delawareans would not be allowed to grow their own cannabis.

Using marijuana in public or a vehicle would remain against the law, and employers would still be able to make their own policies prohibiting usage. Additionally, municipalities could pass ordinances preventing marijuana facilities from operating within their borders.

The measure would regulate marijuana like alcohol, creating a separate Office of Marijuana Control and commissioner under the Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Enforcement.

Up to 30 retail licenses would be issued within 16 months of the bill’s effective date, with applicants selected based on a series of criteria, including wages paid to employees and diversity of workforce. There would be separate licenses for other stages of the process, like growing and distributing marijuana.

The initial licenses would fall into three categories: open competition, social equity and microbusiness, with the social equity licenses being reserved for individuals who live in areas “disproportionately impacted” by marijuana prohibition. Those specific locations would be selected by the Delaware marijuana commissioner, who would be appointed by the governor, based on areas “that have high rates of arrest, conviction, and incarceration relating to the sale, possession, use, cultivation, manufacture, or transport of marijuana.”

Licenses would also be set aside for people who were convicted of a marijuana-related crime or are closely related to someone convicted of such an offense.

Microbusiness licenses would give priority to local small businesses, effectively mimicking the microbrewery model, to prevent “Big Marijuana” from dominating the industry.

The state’s medical marijuana program would remain unchanged.

A host of amendments, most filed this past week, would significantly change certain portions of the legislation, however.
Ten amendments, four of which were introduced by Rep. Osienski, are awaiting action (although some of the proposed alterations might supersede others). They cover various areas of the bill, from allowing counties to prohibit marijuana facilities in their jurisdiction to adding stricter rules around packaging to changing language about what qualifies as a disproportionately impacted area.

One of the key challenges with the bill is the social equity fund it would create. That provision lifts the threshold for passage from three-fifths (25 votes) to three-fourths (31 votes). Passing the measure as is is basically impossible, making it of paramount importance supporters lower the needed vote to 25.

At the same time, they have to thread the needle to be sure that any changes to pick up votes do not cost key supporters. Removing language requiring a union workforce, for instance, might shift some Republicans in favor of the bill but at the expense of Democratic votes, thus causing no change or even a net negative in support.

One other wrinkle of note is Gov. John Carney, who has consistently opposed legalization. Asked during his weekly press conference Tuesday if he would veto the bill should it reach his desk, he declined to say.

“It’s well known that I oppose the legislation and I don’t need to get into all the reasons,” he said. “I just think it’s a bad thing. ... I spent eight years as lieutenant governor trying to get Delawareans to stop smoking, etc. etc. There are some flaws with the legislation itself and so we’ll have to see what the legislature does and take it at that point.”

Some have speculated that should the bill pass the General Assembly he would allow it to become law without his signature (a rarely used but legal tactic) rather than vetoing it and risk angering Democrats.

The governor’s office declined to expand on Gov. Carney’s issues with the bill Friday.