The Connecticut Senate approved legislation May 4 that takes aim at cannabis advertising, gifting and zoning, sending the bill to Gov. Ned Lamont.
The Senate approved House Bill 5329 in a 22-13 vote, according to a CT News Junkie report.
The legislation, which cleared the House in a 98-48 vote last month, includes several tweaks to Connecticut’s adult-use cannabis legalization measure, which Lamont signed into law in June 2021.
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One provision would prohibit cannabis bazaars, events where attendees can purchase cannabis even though it has not yet become available for regulated, commercial sales, according to CT News Junkie.
“It’s closing a loophole in the law that has been exploited by others to be allowed to sell in an unregulated market a regulated product in the state of Connecticut,” Sen. Kevin Witkos, R-Canton, said during the debate, according to the news outlet. “That is a fix that I think should be embraced by everyone.”
RELATED: Connecticut Bill Takes Aim at Cannabis ‘Gifting’
H.B. 5329 would also implement marketing restrictions on adult-use cannabis by prohibiting advertisements within 1,500 yards of a school or church, as well as out-of-state ads from businesses not legally permitted to sell cannabis in Connecticut, CT News Junkie reported.
The legislation also aims to eliminate a provision that bars municipalities from granting zoning approval for more retailers or micro-cultivators than a number that would allow for one retailer and one micro-cultivator for every 25,000 residents in the municipality.
H.B. 5329 would also make changes to Connecticut’s medical cannabis program by allowing physician assistants to recommend cannabis to patients and eliminating the registration and renewal fees for medical cannabis patients by 2024.
