May 22nd, 2023: Minnesota State Legislature Passes Recreational Cannabis Legalization Bill
In the early morning hours of May 22nd, 2023 the Minnesota State senate passed an updated version of congressional legislation legalizing the sale, purchase, use, and even ability to grow recreational cannabis. This bill features minimal restrictions compared to the bill passed in July 2022 which legalized only edible forms of THC in small doses. Governor Tim Walz is expected to sign the bill within 10 days and it should go into affect in August 2022. We will provide further updates when the bill is officially law.
January 11th, 2023: Adult-Use TCH Legalization Process Begins
A recreational cannabis bill passed through the first of 13 committees before it can be voted on the house floor and be written into law.
July 1, 2022: THC Laws in Minnesota End Prohibition
The Minnesota Senate and Governor Tim Walz signed legislation that legalized the sale of edible forms of THC products to purchasers 21+ years old. The law was signed on June 2nd, 2022 and took effect on July 1st 2022.
THC products must be 5mg servings or less, and a container may not contain more than 50mg of THC in Minnesota. Also, the THC must be derived from hemp.
The History of THC and CBD Legality in Minnesota
THC was legal in Minnesota and the rest of the United States before the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937. This law gave birth to all state and local laws prohibiting cannabis across the country.
THC Laws in Minnesota Become Less Severe
Possession and consumption of cannabis would be punished with jail time up until 1976, when possession was essentially decriminalized. At this time, the strict punishments for THC and cannabis from the 1930s combined with the explosion in popularity of the plant were overcrowding jails in every US city. States were forced to change their possession laws to solve this problem. Minnesota reduced the penalty for possession of 1.5 ounces or less to a petty misdemeanor with a maximum $200 fine.
THC Laws in Minnesota For Medical Use
In 2014, Governor Mark Dayton signed a bill legalizing medical cannabis into law for the treatment of 9 severe medical conditions. The bill is considered the most restrictive in the country due to it only allowing patients with Cancer, Seizure Disorder, Multiple Sclerosis (MS), Crohn’s disease, ALS (Lou Gherig’s Disease), HIV/AIDS, Tourette’s, Glaucoma, or another terminal illness with a diagnosis of less than 1 year to live. In the following years, intractable pain, chronic pain, PTSD, and macular degeneration were added to the list of approved conditions to qualify for medical cannabis. The effects of legalizing THC in Minnesota on medical cannabis is unclear right now.
Hemp and CBD Are Legalized at the Federal Level
The 2018 Farm Bill allows farmers to grow hemp again after nearly 100 years of prohibition. CBD products are legal to possess, produce, and sell as long as the Delta 9 THC content is less than 0.3%
THC Laws in Minnesota Attempt to Decriminalize
In 2019, a bill was introduced into the state senate to decriminalize and regulate recreational cannabis use, but it did not pass the senate vote.
Are THC Edibles Legal in Minnesota? Not in These Cities.
- Stillwater
- Robbinsdale
- St. Joseph
- Marshall
- Prior Lake
- Wayzata
- Shakopee
These cities have all enacted moratoriums on the new statewide THC regulations. These moratoriums serve the purpose of allowing the cities to develop zoning and licensing processes before retailers begin sales of THC containing food and beverages. It is expected that these cities will sort out their licensing and zoning, and products will be available within a few months. Right now, any company that can get its hands on hemp derived THC products that are properly labeled and packaged can sell them legally to adults aged 21 or older.
Worker’s Compensation and THC in Minnesota
A question that is up in the air is what happens if an employee is injured on the job after consuming legal THC? The law was written in the 1930’s in response to the end of alcohol prohibition, but alcohol intoxication is very different compared to THC. In addition, THC is still detectable in a person’s body up to 30 days after consuming it, but the effects only last a few hours. This subject is a hot topic amongst employers and lawmakers, and more legislation is expected to address it.