Three cannabis proposals were advanced during the committee’s final executive session before a crucial legislative deadline, and members had questions for a social equity bill sponsor.
The WRAP Act was further unwrapped, fiscal committee schedules for the following week were announced, and the House cannabis policy committee had a full agenda ahead of the Friday cutoff.
Legislation to create permits for some rental operators to give a cannabis product to guests over 21 received positive testimony as lawmakers questioned costs and implications of the change.
Four more bills made it through the house of origin policy committee gateway while fiscal committees ramped up activity in the sprint before the first cutoff deadline on Friday.
Four cannabis-related bills were advanced during executive session including changes to bills on cannabinoid regulation and retail theft, while bills on infused beverages and advertising were unchanged.
In the final week before the first policy committee cutoff, quite a few cannabis bills were positioned for late hearings and last minute executive sessions before Friday.
The sponsor made reasoned arguments for producer-led cannabis research, but industry members were divided over whether the time was right for a cannabis commodity commission.
Feedback on a bill to legalize out-of-state cannabis license ownership was divided: some companies anticipated benefits while others viewed the move as only helping larger entities.
After granting themselves additional time before the house of origin policy committee cutoff on Friday, legislators still had lots of work to do - and many cannabis bills would be left behind.
Senators heard mixed testimony after mixing the hearings on two very different bills, home grow encountered a hitch in the House, and the WRAP Act would be unwrapped in Appropriations.