New Hampshire House Passes Bills to Help Patients and Annul Past Cannabis Convictions
In a significant move, the New Hampshire House of Representatives has passed two bills aimed at helping medical marijuana patients and individuals with past cannabis-related convictions. The measures, which cleared the House on Thursday, would allow patients to grow their own medical marijuana at home and annul certain criminal records related to cannabis possession.
HB 196, sponsored by Rep. Jonah Wheeler (D), would annul past arrests and convictions for simple marijuana possession, covering offenses for possession of up to two ounces of cannabis or five grams of hashish. The bill passed the House on the consent calendar, along with several other unrelated measures.
The second bill, HB 53, sponsored by Rep. Wendy Thomas (D), would allow state-registered patients and caregivers to grow up to three mature plants and three immature plants, as well as 12 seedlings, for personal use. The bill also allows them to possess up to eight ounces of usable cannabis and any amount of unusable cannabis. Landlords would be able to prohibit cultivation in rented properties.
This is the third time Thomas has introduced a bill allowing patients to grow their own medical marijuana at home. The latest version passed with a vote of 328-42 and now heads to the Senate, which has historically been less supportive of cannabis reform.
The House also passed a Republican-led bill, HB 75, to legalize marijuana for adults, but it would not establish a licensed commercial market or a broader regulatory scheme. The bill would remove state penalties for cannabis-related conduct for adults 21 and older, but it would not establish a regulatory structure for a commercial industry.
New Hampshire Governor Kelly Ayotte (R) has signaled that she will veto the legalization bill, citing her opposition to adult-use legalization. Two other legalization bills are currently in play in the state, but they also face long odds.
The passage of these bills is a significant step forward for cannabis reform in New Hampshire, where a poll last June found that almost two-thirds of residents supported legalizing marijuana. The bills now head to the Senate, where lawmakers will consider them further.
