Maryland lawmakers have advanced a pair of bills that would allow adults to manufacture marijuana edibles and concentrates for personal use.
While the state’s cannabis law already allows adults to cultivate their own plants, the legislation from Dels. David Moon (D) and Luke Clippinger (D), as well as Sen. William Smith (D), would expand their options to account for non-flower marijuana products that can be made at home.
The measures would continue to prohibit the use of volatile solvents to create cannabis concentrates.
The House of Delegates version cleared the full chamber earlier this month and advanced through its first committee stop in the Senate on Tuesday by clearing body’s Judicial Proceedings Committee. The Senate companion version of the legislation also moved through the panel, which is chaired by the sponsor, on Tuesday.
Under the legislation, possession, cultivation and distribution of high-volume cannabis in excess of 50 pounds would no longer be considered a felony punishable by a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison. Instead, it would be a misdemeanor carrying a maximum 10 year sentence and/or a $50,000 fine.
It would additionally empower people who are currently facing prison terms that involve a mandatory minimum over cannabis-related convictions to petition the courts for a sentence modification.
“Cannabis is legal in Maryland. It shouldn’t be a crime to produce tinctures, edibles, and other products for personal use at home,” the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP) said in an advisory. “This is not only cost-effective, but also cuts down on traveling to far away dispensaries for rural Marylanders. Meanwhile, a five-year mandatory sentence is grossly excessive for a cannabis offense.”
The bills also deal with non-marijuana issues, including enhancing penalties for crimes related to firearms violations.
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Their advancement comes about one week after the Maryland Senate passed a measure to protect for fire and rescue workers from being penalized for off-duty use of medical marijuana.
Employers could not “discipline, discharge, or otherwise discriminate against the fire and rescue public safety employee with respect to the employee’s compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment” based solely on a positive screening for THC metabolites.
In January, officials in Maryland’s most populous county separately said they were moving to loosen marijuana policies for would-be police officers in an effort to boost recruitment amid a staffing shortage.
Meanwhile, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) last month touted legislation in his State of the State address that would expand opportunities for people to have their criminal records for marijuana expunged, allowing people who violated terms of their parole or probation to petition courts to erase those records.
Photo courtesy of Brian Shamblen.
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