New Hampshire stands alone as the only state in New England that has not legalized marijuana.
A bill passed in April 2024 would not only permit recreational use for adults, but also authorize sales at 15 privately-run marijuana stores. Though the Senate has never voted to legalize cannabis, Gov. Chris Sununu stated he would “back legalization this year if the bill features tight regulatory controls.”
Now, after months of debate, House lawmakers decided to set this bill aside for the year, though now is the time to fight for legalization.
The debate was ended for now by a 178-173 vote to table the bill, with the biggest issue arising being the new authority that would be given to the New Hampshire Liquor Commision. This authority would grant them $8 million in funding to set up a cannabis-regulating system. While Sununu states that the bill “checked a lot of boxes,” the House’s preferred legislation plan envisioned sales at privately run stores, opposite of the franchise model that Sununu supports. He stated previously that in order to earn his support, the bill needed to focus on “harm reduction and keeping it out of kids’ hands,” which he feels is not supported by this bill.
I understand where he is coming from, as privately-owned stores have more free reign to who they let in, and are not under the same levels of control as those part of a franchise. Though these independent markets may face higher market risks, they may have a higher profit margin due to the lack of franchising fees. This could be extremely beneficial for citizens looking for jobs in N.H., as privately-owned businesses might make it easier for them to apply.
Additionally, if this law had been passed, it would legalize the possession of up to two ounces of cannabis for adults, which is twice as much the legal amount for neighbors Vermont and Massachusetts.
Karen O’Keefe, director of state policies for the Marijuana Project Policy, believes this legalization would result in “significant progress.” She states the legalization would prevent hundreds of annual arrests, in addition to stopping people from “losing their children, being denied medical treatment including organ transplants, and losing professional licenses for cannabis.”
I believe that these are serious issues that no human should be denied or stripped of simply because they possessed cannabis. I am originally from Maine and even though I’ve only been in N.H. for a month, the difference in laws between here and my home state are jarring.
Additionally, I imagine the number of minors using cannabis in Maine and N.H. would not differ too greatly, even while it is illegal in Maine for marijuana use under 21. Though a main concern of Sununu’s is keeping it away from minors, I feel as though this is inevitable, and should not be a deciding factor to not pass this into law.
Again, Sununu is the first N.H. governor to support legalization, and still admits to being willing to work with the Senate on this issue. Since Sununu is not running for re-election, and the leading candidate, Kelly Ayotte, does not support legalization, now is the time to take further steps and get this ball rolling, or I fear legalization will never happen in this state.
Jaden Johnson can be contacted at
jaden@kscequinox.com
