New Hampshire Senate votes to allow self-cultivation of medical cannabis

New Hampshire has passed a bill that will allow patients and caregivers to grow cannabis for medical use, limited to 3 flowering plants, 3 growing plants, and 12 cuttings.

New Hampshire has legalized the medical marijuana in 2013, but until now had prohibited the personal cultivation of the plant for personal use. The Legislature had passed a similar bill last year, but Governor Chris Sununu had vetoed it.

«This bill offers Governor Sununu an excellent opportunity to continue evolving his stance on cannabis policy,» said Matt Simon, New England policy director for the Marijuana Policy Project. «Patients throughout New Hampshire are benefiting from cannabis as an alternative to opioids, but many cannot afford the expensive products available at dispensaries.»

NH Senate Approves Bill Allowing Medical Marijuana Patients to Grow Their Own (SB 420) @NHMattSimon: "This bill presents Gov. Sununu with a great opportunity to continue evolving his stance on cannabis policy." #fitn #nhpolitics

— Kevin Landrigan (@KlandriganUL) February 6, 2020

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«Home cultivation is a cost-effective option available to patients and adults in all neighboring jurisdictions, and there is no good reason why it should remain a crime for patients in a state whose motto is »Live Free or Die,»» he added.

The bill of law is now heading to the House of Representatives.Hawaii and New Hampshire on the road to cannabis legalization

«The fact that no senator voted against SB 420 is an encouraging development, but patients aren’t out of the woods yet,» said Simon Moment Marijuana. «Although the bill passed, it was easy to see why Senate President Donna Soucy voted against it. Last year, Soucy and two other Democratic senators voted to uphold Governor Sununu’s veto of a similar bill.»

«Patients will have to either convince Sununu to change his mind or win a few more votes in the Senate for SB 420 to become law,» he said.

At the same time, the legislature is considering a bill that would legalize cannabis for adults in the state, without planning to sell retail, as is currently the case in Vermont. The legalization bill was approved by a House of Representatives committee last month.

Today: A New Hampshire House committee voted in favor of a bill to legalize cannabis for adult use! A full House vote is expected to take place in early February.

- Marijuana Policy Project (@MarijuanaPolicy) January 28, 2020

Lawmakers hope that removing the commercial sales provision from a legalization bill will make it more acceptable to the governor, who has already stated that he opposes large-scale commercial legalization, a a project that, incidentally, already failed last year. Sununu had, however, signed a limited decriminalization measure last year.