Cannabis sales to begin January 1 in Montana

Cannabis that won't be able to be called cannabis, Native Americans allowed to grow it without a license, and CBD finally allowed: everything's in place for legal sales of cannabis begin January 1 in Montana. This rural state in the mid-western United States has just voted at the last minute an amending bill.

Among the last-minute additions is a strict labeling framework. Future cannabis stores in Montana won't be able to call their products «cannabis». « Kids don't know what cannabis is, but they know what marijuana is. So if we decide to make a label with a warning, to make sure kids stay away from it, we have to be specific.», justifies Republican Senator Jason Ellsworth. And so much the worse if «marijuana» is, for many Latin Americans, a discriminatory term.

Another last-minute change: Native Americans will be able to grow cannabis without asking for authorization. The first version of the text, passed in May, automatically granted them a license to grow up to 100m² of cannabis indoors. In other words, the smallest possible plot. The deputies and senators have corrected this, and the Amerindians will be able to increase the size of their plot to up to half a hectare.

CBD, on the other hand, may well be sold in stores, even though Montana politicians had once considered banning it.

Cannabis will remain illegal in half of all counties

The main points of the bill, known as House Bill 701, are as follows, adults over 21 will be able to buy cannabis in stores. Recreational cannabis will be taxed at 20 %, compared with 5 % for medical sales. Revenues from these taxes will go into a fund to support associations fighting drug addiction.

Governor Greg Gianforte signed the law in May. «From the beginning, I've been clear that we need more money to lead the fight against a drug epidemic that is devastating our communities.», said the Republican Party member at the time.

The people of Montana had voted 56 % in favor of legalizing cannabis, in November 2020. From now on, recreational sales will be permitted from January 1 in counties that voted «yes». For the others, cannabis will remain illegal. It may become illegal under a form of positive discrimination.