Politics
After Delaware Governor Vetoes Bill To Block Restrictive Marijuana Zoning Rules, Senator Says He ‘Lied’ About A Deal To Enact It
Delaware’s governor has vetoed a bill that would have overruled local zoning authority on marijuana and made it easier for cannabis businesses to set up shop—and the sponsor of the legislation says the governor “lied” to him about a deal to get it enacted into law.
Gov. Matt Meyer (D) had made it clear in interviews leading up to Thursday’s action that he was struggling with the decision as he tried to balance his respect for local decision-making as a former New Castle County executive with his desire to see the state’s marijuana market launch in a way that ensure broad consumer access to legal and regulated products.
“I support building a well-regulated, adult-use cannabis market that works statewide. The way to do that is to work with our counties as partners, not by stripping communities of their voice in where these stores belong,” Meyer said in a press release about his choice to ultimately reject the legislation.
“SB 75 would override local judgment on the location and operation of cannabis establishments,” he said. “Let’s move forward together—respecting local zoning and exploring revenue-sharing to offset local costs—so this market succeeds and earns public trust in all three counties.”
Along with the veto, the governor sent lawmakers draft proposed legislation that would allocate a portion of marijuana revenue to counties and municipalities, with each getting 4.5 percent of tax money collected from cannabis stores located within their jurisdictions.
“While I fully support the goals of implementing a safe, equitable, and accessible adult-use cannabis market in Delaware, displacing local land use authority without offering any corresponding partnership or support is not how we build durable, effective policy or trust,” Meyer wrote in his veto message.
“If the goal is to ensure that retail cannabis establishments are accessible and successful across Delaware, a market that stands the test of time, then we should be working with our local governments as partners,” he said. “That includes exploring revenue-sharing to offset the local costs associated with zoning, permitting, enforcement, and infrastructure. Preemption without support is not a sustainable path forward.”
Delaware’s adult-use cannabis market launched at the beginning of this month, with the governor touting the state’s first “successful” weekend of adult-use cannabis sales, with total purchases for medical and recreational marijuana totaling nearly $1 million—and compliance checks demonstrating that the regulated market is operating as intended under the law.
Sen. Trey Paradee (D), the sponsor of the now-vetoed cannabis zoning bill, called the governor “untrustworthy,” saying he “lied” about an alleged deal they had to get the legislation enacted.
“I agreed that I would support the county’s sharing revenue from retail marijuana sales, and in return, he agreed that he would take possession of the bill, and then he would allow it to pass into law after 10 days without his signature,” the senator told Delaware Public Media. “In my book, he lied to me. And not only did he lie to me, but he lied to the public.”
“This is going to set [dispensaries] back another year, and they’ve already been delayed over a year, and it’s just so wrong. But beyond that, this is just an incredible handout to gangs and cartels. This just helps the illegal market, but it also helps the the multi-state operators who currently operate in Delaware, who were able to convert their medical dispensaries into recreational, they now have an oligopoly. Delaware consumers are going to pay a higher price because of this, but it’s just incredibly frustrating. I come from a place where a deal is a deal, and your word is your word, and obviously the governor is not a person like that, and that’s unfortunate that that’s who we have as our governor right now.”
Paradee said he thinks the Senate could “easily” override the governor’s veto of the bill, but the “House might be a little bit more of a chore.”
“So we’ll see what happens in January,” he said.
Earlier this month, during an interview with Delaware Public Media, Meyer discussed a conversation he had with Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) about regulating the marijuana industry—drawing a contrast between their respective responsibilities given the fact that Colorado is much larger with more local jurisdictions to interact with compared to Delaware, which has just three counties.
The launch of Delaware’s legal market comes about two years after marijuana legalization was enacted into law under former Gov. John Carney (D).
Ahead of the sales roll-out, the governor last month toured one of the state’s cannabis cultivation facilities, praising the quality of marijuana that’s being produced, which he said will be the “French wine of weed.”
The launch of the legal market comes amid some controversy, however, with critics alleging that allowing medical operators to start adult-use sales ahead of other license applicants is unfair. Dozens of other would-be retailers that have either already received licenses or are still awaiting issuance will need to wait for further regulatory approvals until they can open their doors—a situation that’s frustrated some advocates.
Meanwhile, two lawmakers who led the push to legalize marijuana are separately seeking input from consumers and businesses about the market launch. Paradee, the sponsor of SB 75, and House Majority Whip Rep. Ed Osienski (D)—the primary sponsor of the state’s 2023 legalization bills—put out a new online form this month for residents to share thoughts and feedback about the cannabis program anonymously.
The idea is to identify any hiccups that lawmakers might need to address when they return for next year’s legislative session.
OCM initially projected that recreational sales would start by March, but complications related to securing an FBI fingerprint background check service code delayed the implementation. Lawmakers passed a bill in April to resolve the issue, and the FBI subsequently issued the code that the stat’s marijuana law requires.
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Late last year, OMC held a series of licensing lotteries for cannabis business to start serving adult consumers.
A total of 125 licenses will ultimately be issued, including 30 retailers, 60 cultivators, 30 manufacturers and five testing labs. Last year, regulators also detailed what portion of each category is reserved for social equity applicants, microbusinesses and general open licenses.
Regulators have also been rolling out a series of proposed regulations to stand up the forthcoming adult-use cannabis industry.
Meanwhile, Carney raised eyebrows in January after making a questionable claim that “nobody” wants cannabis shops in their neighborhoods, even if there’s consensus that criminalization doesn’t work.
The then-governor last year signed several additional marijuana bills into law, including measures that would allow existing medical cannabis businesses in the state to begin recreational sales on an expedited basis, transfer regulatory authority for the medical program and make technical changes to marijuana statutes.
The dual licensing legislation is meant to allow recreational sales to begin months earlier than planned, though critics say the legislation would give an unfair market advantage to larger, more dominant businesses already operating in multiple states.
In October, Carney also gave final approval to legislation to enact state-level protections for banks that provide services to licensed marijuana businesses.
Delaware’s medical marijuana program is also being significantly expanded under a law that officially took effect last July.
The policy change removes limitations for patient eligibility based on a specific set of qualifying health conditions. Instead, doctors will be able to issue cannabis recommendations for any condition they see fit.
The law also allows patients over the age of 65 to self-certify for medical cannabis access without the need for a doctor’s recommendation.
Photo courtesy of Carlos Gracia.
