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Cannabis Expungement Law Takes Effect in D.C.

March 17, 2023 Published by

The measure that was approved by the Council of the District of Columbia late last year mandates an “automatic sealing for non-dangerous, non-convictions as well as shorten the waiting periods before a person is eligible to seal their record,” and “would also expand the eligibility of who can seal their record.” The bill was signed by Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser in January, but its enactment was delayed due to an arcane part of lawmaking in our nation’s capital. 

Laws in D.C. are subject to congressional oversight and approval––a stipulation that has prevented the district from implementing legal marijuana sales, despite the fact that voters there legalized cannabis back in 2014.

After Bowser signed the cannabis expungement measure in January, the bill was transmitted to Congress. As NORML explained, all “legislation must undergo a 30-day Congressional review prior to becoming law,” and absent a Congressional intervention, the bill will then become law.

That moment is now––or rather, on March 10, when the law officially took effect.

NORML has more on the new law:

“The Act provides for the automatic review and expungement of any convictions or citations specific to marijuana-related offenses that have subsequently been decriminalized or legalized in the District of Columbia, as well as any ‘records related only to simple possession for any quantity of marijuana in violation of D.C. Code § 48-904.01(d)(1) before February 15, 2015.’ It requires all cannabis-specific expungements to be processed by the courts by January 1, 2025.”

Paul Armentano, the deputy director of NORML, hailed the new law.

“Thousands of DC residents unduly carry the burden and stigma of a past conviction for behavior that District lawmakers, most Americans, and a growing number of states, no longer consider to be a crime,” Armenato said. “Our sense of justice and our principles of fairness demand that the courts move swiftly to right the past wrongs of cannabis prohibition and criminalization.”

In 2021, it appeared that legal cannabis sales might finally be coming to Washington, D.C.

That’s because Senate Democrats at the time introduced a draft of an appropriations bill that did not include the so-called “Harris Rider,” a budget rider named for Republican Congressman Andy Harris of Maryland that had appeared in every such bill since 2014.

The Harris Rider has precluded Washington, D.C. from engaging in legal commercial marijuana sales. 

At the time, Bowser celebrated the rider’s apparent exclusion from the proposed bill.

“The Senate appropriations bill is a critical step in recognizing that in a democracy, D.C. residents should be governed by D.C. values,” Bowser’s office said at the time. “As we continue on the path to D.C. statehood, I want to thank Senate Appropriations Committee Chair, Senator Patrick Leahy, our good friend and Subcommittee Chair, Senator Chris Van Hollen, and, of course, our champion on the Hill, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, for recognizing and advancing the will of D.C. voters. We urge Congress to pass a final spending bill that similarly removes all anti-Home Rule riders, allowing D.C. to spend our local funds as we see fit.”

Activist groups pressured Democrats in Congress to hold firm and ditch the Harris Rider.

“In one hand, Congress continues to make strides in advancing federal marijuana reform grounded in racial justice, while simultaneously being responsible for prohibiting the very jurisdiction that led the country in legalizing marijuana through this lens from being able to regulate it. This conflict and contradiction must end now,” Queen Adesuyi, Senior National Policy Manager for the Drug Policy Alliance, said in a statement last year.

But it was not to be.

The appropriations bill that ultimately emerged last year included the Harris Rider.

The post Cannabis Expungement Law Takes Effect in D.C. appeared first on High Times.

Inspections of Washington, D.C. ‘Gifting’ Shops Put on Pause

September 8, 2022 Published by

Planned inspections of Washington, D.C.’s unlicensed cannabis retailers have reportedly been delayed.

The inspections, which were announced last month by the city’s Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration, were designed to ensure the businesses “abide by the regulatory requirements of DC Health, the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs (DCRA), the District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department (FEMS), and the Office of Tax and Revenue (OTR).”The inspections, which were announced last month by the city’s Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration, were designed to ensure the businesses “abide by the regulatory requirements of DC Health, the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs (DCRA), the District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department (FEMS), and the Office of Tax and Revenue (OTR).”

But the DCist reports that officials are “delaying plans to inspect the city’s many marijuana gifting stores this week, deepening the confusion around the maybe-legal, maybe-not industry that continues to grow across the city.”

The outlet, citing a source familiar with the situation, said that law enforcement officials “had raised concerns about the protocol for inspecting the stores, and what would happen if inspectors found weapons or other illicit items.”

The inspections were scheduled to begin after Labor Day.

Voters in the nation’s capital approved a ballot initiative in 2014 that legalized recreational cannabis, but due to an arcane provision that gives Congress oversight over its laws, the sale of pot remains prohibited in D.C.

Since that vote eight years ago, every appropriations bill passed by Congress has contained what is known as the “Harris Rider,” named Maryland Republican Congressman Andy Harris, which prohibits Washington, D.C. from commercializing recreational cannabis.

Democrats on Capitol Hill flirted with the idea of removing the Harris Rider from the latest spending bill when it released a draft of the legislation last fall.

But by March of this year, the final version of the bill included the Harris Rider, much to the chagrin of cannabis reform advocates in D.C.

“Congress needs to step out of this,” Phil Mendelson, the chair of the D.C. City Council, said in March. “It perpetuates the current lawless situation in the city.”

That has not stopped a number of intrepid business owners in Washington, D.C. from finding a workaround to the ban.

The city has a number of illicit retailers that sell cannabis through the practice of “gifting,” through which a customer pays for an item such as a t-shirt, and is in turn provided with a “gift” of cannabis.

Gifting has become so ubiquitous––and popular––in Washington, D.C. that some policymakers and industry officials have expressed concerns that it is chewing into the margins of legal, medical cannabis operations, with patients opting to go the illicit route instead of filling out tedious paperwork.

“The medical side are struggling on the brink of existence, while the illegal side has only grown more rapidly,” Mendelson said in April.

That month, the D.C. Council rejected a proposal that would have imposed harsh fines on “gifting” retailers.

A couple months later, the council passed a different measure that was also proposed with an eye toward buttressing the city’s beleaguered medical cannabis retailers. Under the new ordinance, which was signed into law by Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser in July, medical cannabis patients in the city are now allowed to “self-certify” their qualifications for the treatment, which will enable them to bypass a doctor.

“We have made it a priority over the years to build a more patient-centric medical marijuana program and this legislation builds on those efforts,” Bowser said in a statement. “We know that by bringing more medical marijuana patients into the legal marketplace in a timely manner and doing more to level the playing field for licensed medical marijuana providers, we can protect residents, support local businesses, and provide clarity to the community.”

The post Inspections of Washington, D.C. ‘Gifting’ Shops Put on Pause appeared first on High Times.

D.C. City Council Rejects Proposal To Penalize ‘Gifting’ Shops

April 6, 2022 Published by

A bill that sought to levy harsh fines on businesses in Washington, D.C. that engage in the practice of “gifting” –– whereby a retailer sells a product or good to customer that is accompanied by a “gift” of cannabis –– failed to advance within the district’s city council on Tuesday.

The emergency legislation would have “created fines of $30,000 for shops caught gifting marijuana to customers and allowed D.C. residents over 21 to purchase medical marijuana without seeing a doctor first and simply self-attesting to their medical need,” according to NBC Washington.

Local television station WTOP reported that the “council voted 8-5 in favor of the bill, but because it was emergency legislation, it needed nine votes to advance.”

The bill was pushed by Phil Mendelson, the chairman of the D.C. Council, who called for an emergency vote on the legislation last week.

Mendelson says that the widespread practice of “gifting” has undermined the district’s medical cannabis establishments, with patients opting to procure weed via illicit means instead of through the regulated channels. As such, the bill would have nixed the requirement to see a doctor prior to buying medical cannabis.

“The medical side are struggling on the brink of existence, while the illegal side has only grown more rapidly,” Mendelson, a Democrat, said, as quoted by the Washington Post.

The Post said that the bill “had alarmed many of the proprietors and patrons of those [gifting] shops, which faced steep civil fines under the proposed legislation that they said could have put them out of business.”

Some owners of those establishments said that the bill would have had a devastating economic impact on the city.

“If the legislation passed today, it would put hundreds if not thousands of people out of work,” said Derek Dawson, a proprietor of one of the gifting shops, as quoted by NBC Washington. “Sixty percent of the people who are involved in the industry are either Black or Hispanic, and so like the people of color have found a way to find social equity in this market,”

As business owners like Dawson see it, the initiative passed by a majority of D.C. voters in 2014 that legalized recreational pot use gave them the right to “gift” weed to customers.

Complicating matters is Congress, which oversees all laws in the nations’ capital. And since 2014, every congressional spending bill has included a provision that has barred Washington, D.C. from commercializing cannabis.

There was hope among cannabis reform advocates that the current Democratic-led Congress would scrap that provision, known as the “Harris Rider,” named for its author Republican Congressman Andy Harris of Maryland.

Those hopes were bolstered in the fall, when Senate Democrats unveiled a draft of an appropriations bill that notably did not include the Harris Rider, a development that was applauded by Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser.

“The Senate appropriations bill is a critical step in recognizing that in a democracy, D.C. residents should be governed by D.C. values,” the mayor’s office said in a statement at the time. “As we continue on the path to D.C. statehood, I want to thank Senate Appropriations Committee Chair, Senator Patrick Leahy, our good friend and Subcommittee Chair, Senator Chris Van Hollen, and, of course, our champion on the Hill, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, for recognizing and advancing the will of D.C. voters. We urge Congress to pass a final spending bill that similarly removes all anti-Home Rule riders, allowing D.C. to spend our local funds as we see fit.”

But the optimism fizzled out last month, when Democrats released a new appropriations bill that did include the rider.

The post D.C. City Council Rejects Proposal To Penalize ‘Gifting’ Shops appeared first on High Times.

Emergency Vote in DC on Cannabis Gifting Services Scheduled for Tomorrow

April 4, 2022 Published by

Cannabis gifting storefronts and delivery services in Washington, DC are bracing themselves today for a DC City Council emergency vote scheduled for tomorrow, April 5, 2022, that could drive them back underground.

Initiative 71 legalized cannabis for recreational use in DC in 2014, with 64.87% of voters approving the measure. However, DC’s lack of statehood means that the city budget has to be approved by Congress — and immediately following the passage of the initiative, Maryland Republican Rep. Andy Harris introduced an amendment to the bill known as the Harris Rider that has effectively allowed Congress to block the city government from legalizing commercial adult-use sales.

Residents of DC are currently allowed to possess up to two ounces of cannabis, grow up to six plants, and gift up to an ounce to other adults, but commercial sales remain banned due to the Harris Rider. Over the last several years, this has led to a “gifting economy,” a creative workaround in which customers purchase an item such as a T-shirt, digital artwork, gym membership or other product and receive a cannabis gift in exchange.

This has led to some tension between medical cannabis dispensary owners and the folks running gifting services. It’s also attracted the ire of DC City Council Chairman Phil Mendelson, who has attempted to take action against I-71 gifting shops several times.

Last year, Mendelson introduced an emergency bill to empower city agencies to engage in “revocation of licenses, sealing of premises, and fines for businesses purchasing, selling or exchanging marijuana.” The language in the bill that would have increased enforcement on gifting businesses, including a fine of up to $30,000, was removed one day ahead of the vote.

Now Mendelson has revived the fight, calling for an emergency vote tomorrow that would allow the city to close down gifting businesses starting in mid-May, while also eliminating the need for a doctor’s recommendation for anyone procuring medical cannabis from DC dispensaries by self-certifying their medical use. This move is supported by many medical cannabis dispensary owners, who complain that they’re losing business to gifting stores, which operate in a gray area of the law due to the Harris Rider.

A resolution from Mendelson’s office, reported by DCist.com, declares that “Several dozen illegal cannabis businesses are currently operating in the District. These businesses … do not pay the fees and taxes licensed facilities must pay, putting licensed cannabis businesses at a competitive disadvantage.”

Under I-71, DC residents can grow up to six plants for personal use and gifting — but home growers accused of running an illegal service could be fined $30,000 and locked out of their residence for 96 hours.

DC residents can contact council members to let them know they don’t want their taxes being used to shut down cannabis gifting stores. The vote is scheduled for tomorrow’s legislative session.

The post Emergency Vote in DC on Cannabis Gifting Services Scheduled for Tomorrow appeared first on High Times.

Recreational Cannabis Law in Washington, D.C. May Soon Be Operational

October 21, 2021 Published by

Congress may be on the verge of removing a crucial impediment that has kept Washington, D.C. from implementing the recreational marijuana law it passed years ago.

The appropriations bill introduced by Democrats in the United States Senate on Monday evening did not contain the so-called “Harris Rider” that has prevented the District of Columbia from enjoying legal weed, despite voters there passing a legalization proposal all the way back in 2014.

Written by Republican Congressman Andy Harris of Maryland, “the budget rider written by Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.) has prevented D.C. from commercializing the drug and has been added into every appropriations bill since [it was passed by D.C. voters],” the Washington Post explained, noting that Congress “has oversight over all D.C. laws.” 

The appropriations bills, unveiled by Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, were greeted warmly by legalization advocates. 

Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser likewise approved of the move.

“The Senate appropriations bill is a critical step in recognizing that in a democracy, D.C. residents should be governed by D.C. values,” Bowser’s office said in a statement, as quoted by NBC Washington. “As we continue on the path to D.C. statehood, I want to thank Senate Appropriations Committee Chair, Senator Patrick Leahy, our good friend and Subcommittee Chair, Senator Chris Van Hollen, and, of course, our champion on the Hill, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, for recognizing and advancing the will of D.C. voters. We urge Congress to pass a final spending bill that similarly removes all anti-Home Rule riders, allowing D.C. to spend our local funds as we see fit.”

Pro-marijuana activist Adam Eidinger told the station that it has “been a seven-year struggle to get to this point, to remove this rider, and Democrats have been helpful.”

“We have to move forward, and the Congress helped us last night—actually did something for D.C. last night,” Eidinger said.

Republicans, however, were less than enthused. In a statement, Senate Appropriations Committee Vice Chairman Richard Shelby cited the removal of the rider as a source of the GOP’s opposition.

“Chairman Leahy’s decision to unilaterally unveil partisan spending bills is a significant step in the wrong direction. This one-sided process has resulted in bills that spend in excess of the Democrats’ own budget resolution and fail to give equal consideration to our nation’s defense. Their bills are filled with poison pills and problematic authorizing provisions, and they remove important legacy riders on topics like terrorism, abortion, and immigration that for years have enjoyed broad support on both sides of the aisle,” Shelby said.

Leahy said that the robust legislative package makes “important investments in our nation’s infrastructure, our environment, and the middle class, including historic increases to promote affordable housing, educate our nation’s children, combat climate change, and improve healthcare.” 

The presence of the Harris Rider has “created a pot paradox in which it’s fine to possess it but not to buy it or sell it—in turn allowing gray-market sellers to continue proliferating while preventing D.C. from benefiting from the tax revenue boost that comes with regulating recreational sales,” the Washington Post said.

The move by Leahy is the latest sign that Democrats on Capitol Hill are ready to embrace legalization. 

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said earlier this year that Democrats are eager to pursue such legislation, and he pointed to the changing attitudes toward pot as a factor.

“In 2018, I was the first member of the Democratic leadership to come out in support of ending the federal prohibition. I’m sure you ask, “Well what changed?” Well, my thinking evolved. When a few of the early states—Oregon and Colorado—wanted to legalize, all the opponents talked about the parade of horribles: Crime would go up. Drug use would go up. Everything bad would happen,” Schumer told Politico. “The legalization of states worked out remarkably well. They were a great success. The parade of horribles never came about, and people got more freedom. And people in those states seem very happy.”

The post Recreational Cannabis Law in Washington, D.C. May Soon Be Operational appeared first on High Times.