The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold public hearings on four cannabis policy bills, including the home cultivation bill (HB 53), on Tuesday, March 25.
The first hearing will begin at 1pm in Room 100 of the State House, followed by the others. Here are the four bills:
- 1pm: HB 51 (Thomas) would enable ATCs to expand product offerings by utilizing affordable non-intoxicating cannabinoids (e.g. CBD, CBG, and CBN) derived from hemp. ATCs would be required to have hemp-derived cannabinoids tested by an independent lab before using them to make products for patients, to ensure safety. The House approved this bill in a unanimous vote without objection or debate.
- 1:15pm: HB 53 (Thomas) would allow home cultivation of therapeutic cannabis for qualifying patients and designated caregivers to cultivate limited amounts. The limit would be 3 mature plants, 3 immature plants, and 12 seedlings for each patient. The House passed this bill by a very large margin, 328-42.
- 1:30pm: HB 196 (Wheeler) would improve New Hampshire’s cannabis annulment law by removing the fee, allowing for a more streamlined process, and applying it to any misdemeanor and violation-level cannabis possession record from before January 1, 2025. The House passed it in a voice vote.
- 1:45: HB 75 (Verville) would legalize unlimited possession, cultivation, and sale of cannabis for adults with no regulation of sales. This bill passed the House in a voice vote. However, it seems extremely unlikely that the Senate will take this bill seriously due to its lack of limits or regulations.
The committee will allow members of the public to speak on any of these bills. The chair may limit each person’s testimony to approximately three minutes. Although the hearings are scheduled in 15-minute increments, the committee will usually listen to testimony from all who sign up. For those who attend in person, there will be a sign-in sheet in the committee room for each bill where you can sign up to testify or simply indicate your position on the bill.
If you can’t attend the hearings in person, it’s easy to sign in and register your support from home. Just visit the Senate’s remote sign-in page and follow these simple steps:
- Select the date (March 25)
- Select the committee (Judiciary)
- Select the bill number
- Indicate your position on the bill and (optionally) share any comments or written testimony
Finally, if you’d like to share your thoughts directly with the five senators who serve on this committee, visit this page and click “email entire committee.”
