Lead Sponsor: Representative Denise Provost
What H.3195 would do:
· Give Massachusetts Farmers the right to grow marijuana by:
o Reversing the exception for marijuana cultivation from the zoning definition of “agriculture”
o Removing the state-imposed caps on the number of marijuana growers
o Reducing permits fees for growers from $15,000, to an annual $100 fee
· Reduce restrictions on the personal use of marijuana by:
o Removing limitations on how much marijuana an individual over the age of 21 may grow or possess for personal use
o Requiring employers to treat off-duty marijuana consumption just like off-duty alcohol consumption
o Treating the regulation of marijuana much as we do alcohol1
· Reduce Marijuana Bureaucracy by:
o Relying on our existing Department of Agriculture, Department of Revenue, and the Department of Public Health to oversee the marijuana industry
o Avoiding the creation of new agencies or regulatory bodies
· Optimize the economic development potential of marijuana by:
o Providing for local option licensing of Cannabis Cafés
o Authorizing marijuana farmer’s markets
· Shrink the Marijuana Black Market by:
o Retroactively applying provisions of the law to pending civil citations and actions with regard to marijuana possession, cultivation, and distribution
o Reducing the new marijuana sales tax by 1.75%
· Sensibly regulate marijuana advertising and packaging by:
o Prohibiting methods designed to appeal to youth (near schools, using cartoon characters, or vending machines, etc.)
o Requiring strict warning labels and sealed purchase containers, retailers’ employee training, and a “secret shopper” program to monitor retailers
· Discourage inappropriate behaviors by:
o Directing 12.5% of revenue to the Commonwealth Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Fund.
o Establishing criminal penalties for supplying marijuana to underage persons, or administering it to any person without their knowledge or consent.