Montana works to regulate its cannabis market

Montana's lower house advanced three bills last week on the future regulation of cannabis in the state after voters in the Montana have approved the legalization of cannabis for adult use last year.

The measure passed by the state's citizens authorizes the sale of cannabis from January 2022 and aims to earmark a significant portion of tax revenues to repair the damage of the war on drugs. But according to Democratic members, the bills put forward by the Republican-controlled House struggle to respect voters' wishes on taxing cannabis sales and earmarking the new revenue.

Three bills

House Bills 707, 701 and 670 passed in preliminary votes after being debated in the House. The Republicans' watchword was to advance all three bills to the Senate to give more time for amendments and lawmakers to consider how best to tax cannabis sales and allocate revenue.

The first bill to be debated was the HB 701 which would limit licenses to existing cannabis producers and dispensaries for 18 months and establish separate licenses for recreational and medical dispensaries. Counties would also have to «accept» cannabis businesses and send a portion of tax revenues to the state, notably for mental health and addiction treatment.

The HB 670, The bill would raise the tax on medical cannabis to 5%, lower the tax on adult-use sales to 15% and create a single license for both medical and adult-use sales. Under the bill, one-third of recreational cannabis sales would also go into a trust fund designed to reduce the economic and social costs of cannabis cultivation and processing.

The third bill to be debated was the HB 707, This would set up a three-tier system based on the way the state handles alcohol: cannabis producers would sell to wholesalers, who would sell to dispensaries. A license would also be required for people to grow cannabis at home, and all tax revenues, from a 20% tax on wholesale sales, would go into the state fund.

After the Lower House, it will be the Senat's turn to examine the three measures.