HARTFORD — On the 50th anniversary of the war on drugs, the state Senate put the finishing touches on legislation to legalize marijuana in Connecticut.
On July 1, it will be legal for adults over-21 to have an ounce-and-a-half of marijuana, and retail sales in Connecticut may begin as soon as next spring, under legislation that the state Senate approved after a 70-minute debate on Thursday morning.
The bill, which passed in a 16-11 vote with nine senators absent, after a brief debate, was the third time in 10 days that the Senate voted in favor of the landmark legislation. The bill focuses on cannabis business opportunities in inner-city neighborhoods that have been targets for generations in the failed war on drugs.
“Here we are again,” said Sen. Gary Winfield, D-New Haven, co-chairman of the Judiciary Committee, when the debate began at about 10:30. He said that the new version is now focused on particular census tracks with low incomes and histories of drug enforcement.
Winfield noted that Thursday was the 50th anniversary of the war on drugs declared by President Richard Nixon on June 17, 1971, which targeted the counter culture, the anti-war movement and communities of color in urban areas. “It has come to be acknowledged that those individuals who worked for Richard Nixon had certain intentions,” he said. “We put in place unjust laws. ”
“My concerns regarding our young people and the message that the underlying bill sends to our young people is of concern,” said Sen. John Kissel of Enfield, the top Republican on the Judiciary Committee, who voted against the bill. He said that towns and cities in the eastern part of the start are suffering economically, and he is concerned that citizens there might be shut out of business opportunities.
“It’s not just about New Haven, Hartford and Bridgeport,” Winfield replied. “It goes beyond that.”
Kissel admitted that he has constituents who believe that marijuana is less dangerous to public health than alcohol. “I don’t believe that just because other states are going down this path, that we should,” Kissel said. “Why can’t Connecticut be that shining city on the hill? An oasis?”
The version of the legislation, which easily passed the House of Representatives late Wednesday, was nearly identical to a bill that cleared the Senate early June 8, but which died at midnight June 9 when the House failed to act before the regular legislative session ended.
A version passed in special session earlier in the week was threatened with a veto by Gov. Lamont who opposed measures that would open business opportunities beyond under-served communities and into the population of those statewide who had been convicted of marijuana crimes.
The bill that cleared the Senate and now heads to Lamont’s desk for his signature, will provide paths for people who have been convicted of lower-level drug possession offenses to erase their criminal records. People in the social-equity provisions of the legislation will be able to seek growing partnerships, and other business opportunities, including retail, marketing and delivery, under the multi-agency program headed by the state Department of Consumer Protection and a new Social Equity Council.
Sen. Dan Champagne, R-Vernon, a former police officer, charged that the 15-member Social Equity Council would be almost entirely populated by Democrats, which he characterized as partisan. “I also fear where the money ends up,” he said. “I also have concerns that in many places throughout this bill that the police are basically handcuffed.”
Projections for tax revenue exceed $73 million by the 2025-26 fiscal year, but only $4 million in the budget year that starts July 1. An April poll from Sacred Heart University indicated that 63.9 percent of the state favors the legalization of marijuana.
State Senate Minority Leader Kevin Kelly, R-Stratford, noted that earlier Thursday morning, the House adjourned its special session, leaving the Senate with a take-it-of-leave-it agenda, so if the cannabis bill was amended, the General Assembly would have to start another special session if it were to try to pass adult-use cannabis again. He warned of adverse health effects on both adults and children that legal cannabis become law.
Adam Wood, state spokesman for the Marijuana Policy Project, said the law contains “meaningful” public safety and health regulations, as well as employment and economic opportunities.
“The Connecticut Legislature’s commitment to legalizing cannabis through a justice-centered approach is commendable,” Wood said. “For decades, cannabis prohibition and criminalization has harmed some of the state’s most vulnerable communities. This bill not only ends this failed and unjust policy, but it also includes measures that will work to repair the harm that it has caused.”
kdixon@ctpost.com Twitter: @KenDixonCT
