A Colorado bill attempting to legalize and regulate cannabis consumption lounges has been approved by the senate, but harsh words from Governor John Hickenlooper indicate that the bill won’t be turned into law anytime soon, at least not in its current form.
According to the Denver Post, Hickenlooper pledged to veto the bill only hours after it won senate approval. Senate Bill 184 would allow local municipalities to decide for themselves whether to allow on-site consumption clubs, and would allow for exemptions to the Clean Air Act that makes smoking indoors illegal in Colorado. It’s those exemptions that Hickenlooper opposes, calling SB184 a “crack in the door” of indoor smoking regulations.
“We went to an amazing amount of trouble to say that we are not going to have smoking in workplaces in Colorado,” the Governor said. “Smoking is bad for you — very bad for you.”
Hickenlooper also voiced his disapproval for Senate Bill 192, a measure that would allow Colorado dispensaries to make home deliveries to the state’s medical patients. Hickenlooper’s opposition to SB192 is less clear, but he inexplicably mentioned the Trump administration’s threat of a federal crackdown as reason not to pass the bill.
“Given the uncertainty in Washington, this is not the time to be … trying to carve off new turf and expand markets and make dramatic statements about marijuana,” he said. “The federal government can yield a pretty heavy hand on this and I think we should be doing everything we can to demonstrate … we are being responsible in how we implement the will of our voters.”
The bill has bipartisan support and already passed the Senate business committee, but Hickenlooper has the final say, so things are still looking bleak.
With the Governor’s strict opposition, it doesn’t look like Colorado will be getting home delivery or cannabis lounges anytime soon, but only time will tell if state legislators are able to rewrite the bills and change Hickenlooper’s mind.
