Seeing green: Lawmakers face challenges trying to find right fit for cannabis regulation – wlos.com

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by Jennifer Emert
ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — Possession of all but small amounts of cannabis in nearly all of North Carolina is still a crime.

Several bills before state lawmakers are looking to change that.

News 13 questioned a local Western North Carolina lawmaker why efforts have stalled while public opinion polls grow in favor of legalizing at least a medical cannabis program.
Much like piecing together a complicated puzzle, state lawmakers are facing challenges with trying to find the right fit for regulating cannabis in North Carolina.
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Some pieces to the puzzle that came together eight years ago to legalize hemp and CBD were a fit for Art Myers, an Asheville resident.

“I let my medicine be my food and my food be my medicine,” said Myers.
It's a philosophy that led him to CBD and cannabis products, and recently to Asheville’s Hemp Fest.
“CBD oil is what lubricated my joints. I don’t feel 76, I run, jump and play,” explained Myers talking with vendor Shantel Haverdink, a sales representative at Best Damn Gummies in Michigan.
“Awesome, yes. I love it,” Shantel said giving Art a high five.
POLL: WHAT TYPE OF MARIJUANA SHOULD N.C. LEGALIZE?
“Living healthy,” Art replied.
With Virginia the only surrounding state to legalize cannabis, Art said he hopes North Carolina is next.
“I think it should be legalized because I believe in individual sovereignty,” said Myers.
Five pieces of cannabis legislation are before NC lawmakers. The Compassionate Care Act, or Senate Bill 3, the medical component, didn’t get Buncombe County state Senator Julie Mayfield’s support when it was first introduced in 2022.
“The same company will have to grow, process and sell medical marijuana, so seed to sale is the phrase for that," said Sen. Mayfield (D – District 49), sitting down with News 13. "My concern about that is, it doesn’t allow room for small growers of marijuana."
Tight licensing rules and fees also concern Attorney Rod Kight who helps companies navigate cannabis and hemp regulations.
“The current version of the bill only allows for 10 licenses, and of those 10 licenses only eight dispensaries or distribution centers," he said. "So you think, that’s 80 for the entire state of North Carolina. If you do that math, that’s one dispensary for every 130,000 people more of less. You know, Buncombe County I think has 270,000 people. So all of Buncombe County just by way of example, we would have two dispensaries, and that’s just, I think we have 61 pharmacies. That’s not apples to apples, but it does make you think."
While none of that’s changed, now in 2023, the legislation has Sen. Mayfield’s support. News 13 questioned, why?
“In order for the bill to pass at all it has to have this very tight licensing system," she said. "And so what I’ve decided is, better for the bill to pass with this system in place, that we can then try to revisit in four or five years."
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The measure, now before a House committee, has been stalled, according to Mayfield, for work on the state’s budget. Sen. Mayfield’s also a co-sponsor to Senate Bill 346, which is an adult use or recreational marijuana measure.

“That’s a Democratic led bill, Democratic cosponsors on that bill, primary sponsors, so that bill is not going to go anywhere," she said. "But I think what it does is, it sends the message that there are some of us in the state who are ready to move where many other states have gone, which is full recreation legalization."

It also proposes decriminalizing cannabis.
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“There are thousands and thousands of people who have been convicted, are currently serving time for personal possessions of personal use marijuana and very small amounts and that, for a lot of us, just seems like a waste,” said Sen. Mayfield.

Click the links below to read through some of the proposed bills:
Other pieces for consideration include a separate North Carolina House measure to legalize the sale of cannabis and a licensing program for cannabinoid related compounds, plus sale and distribution regulations, that’s hemp derived THC some with the same psychoactive affects as marijuana.
“Somebody was caught selling a counterfeit Delta product that had fentanyl in it,"said Lee VanTine, owner of Apotheca stores throughout North Carolina and in Buncombe County. "So we need to regulate the industry."
These products with hemp derived THC up to .3% are legal, but VanTine says should have age limits along with testing requirements and packaging restrictions.
“No cartoon characters, it even says no unicorns," VanTine says, showing one product. "So the idea here, these products are not for children, they’re for adults, they need to be packaged properly. We need to have testing to make sure that they’re safe, no microbials in them and no residual solvents in them and that they’re compliant."
Of the different bills or pieces, the Compassionate Care Act is the furthest along.

These products with hemp derived THC up to .3 percent are legal but Apotheca Owner Lee VanTine says should have age limits along with testing requirements and packaging restrictions.(Photo Credit: WLOS Staff)

SEEING GREEN: WHAT'S THE STATUS OF THE EBCI'S MEDICAL CANNABIS PROGRAM?
“I think it’s about time,” said Myers.

“We’ve needed this," said Kight. "The polls show that an overwhelming majority of Americans and North Carolinians are in favor of medical marijuana and so that’s positive."
Still, even if it wins approval of lawmakers, ramping up a medical program takes time.
“There’s a cannabis commission that’s created,"Sen. Mayfield said. "There’s actually two different bodies that are created by the bill. Those have to get created and stood up and functioning."
“What do doctors need to know? How do they make a formal recommendation? What do the dispensaries need to have? How does a patient get a card? What does the card even look like?” questioned Kight.
The average timeframe, according to News 13's research looking at other state programs and talking with Sen. Mayfield, from approval to the first legal sale, takes about 18 months to two years.
That leaves the hemp derived TCH products with .3 THC as the legal alternative as lawmakers pull together the pieces before the session expires.
“It’s just come to a point where, it’s an issue now, or more of an issue now and I think they need to address it,” said Myers.

Thursday May 4, 2023 is the NC Legislature’s crossover day, when measures must win approval in at least one chamber, to have a chance at passage in this legislative session. (Photo Credit: WLOS Staff)

Thursday May 4, 2023 is the NC Legislature’s crossover day, when measures must win approval in at least one chamber, to have a chance at passage in this legislative session. The session runs through the end of August. News 13 will continue to update this story as we follow legislation.
In part three of the WLOS 'Seeing Green' series, News 13 looks at what type of THC is already legal in North Carolina due to the Farm Bill, and why some shop owners want more regulation. Tune into News 13 at 6 p.m. Thursday night, April 4.

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