Legalization of cannabis soon to be introduced in Rhode Island

A committee of the Rhode Island House of Representatives discussed a bill on Tuesday aimed at legalizing cannabis in the state, as well as a separate budget proposal from the governor’s office, both of which include provisions aimed at ending the criminalization of cannabis and creating a regulated market.

«I have been in favor of legalizing cannabis for a number of years,» Democratic Representative Scott Slater told his fellow lawmakers during Tuesday’s hearing. «I simply believe it’s the best public policy» and that it is «long overdue.».

Referring to to Rhode Island's neighboring states Among the states that have already legalized it, he described Rhode Island as «a sort of island of prohibition, surrounded by legal cannabis on all sides.».

«We're already dealing with this situation,» he said. «We might as well collect the revenue that should be coming to us» by legalizing sales.

However, the proposal put forward by the representatives appears to have already hit a snag on one point, unlike Governor Dan McKee’s proposal: it does not provide for automatic amnestye for past convictions related to cannabis that would no longer constitute an offense following legalization.

«The proposed project has yielded much less effective results in the states that have adopted this model, with fewer than 5 % of eligible applicants receiving assistance,«, said Jordan Goyette of Reclaim RI, a pro-legalization advocacy group. «The economic impact of expunging as many criminal records as possible should, in and of itself, be reason enough for automatic processing.»

«People who have been affected by the wars on drugs »and, more specifically, those affected by the prohibition of cannabis should not be subjected to yet another burden,« he said. “No one should be penalized disproportionately to the severity of an offense that will soon be regulated in a manner similar to any other controlled and legal substance. We don’t need to reinvent the wheel of the the failed policy of prohibition. »We have to break this cycle.".

As proposed, the legislation would require individuals who have previously been convicted of possessing up to two ounces (approximately 60 grams) of cannabis to file a motion with the courts to have their record expunged.

It would also allow adults aged 21 and older to purchase and possess up to one ounce (28 grams) of cannabis. They could also grow up to six plants at home, including three in the flowering stage. The maximum amount of cannabis allowed to be stored in a given household would be capped at 10 ounces.

The governor's proposal to legalize marijuana does not allow for personal cultivation.