420 with CNW – Guam Legalizes Recreational Cannabis

April 10, 2019 03:20:24

Lou Leon Guerrero, the Governor of Guam, has signed into law a bill that legalizes recreational cannabis in the U.S. territory. This signing comes after months of intense debate in this small Pacific island of 164,000 residents.

The law provides for the creation of a nine-member Cannabis Control Board which will draft the rules governing retail sales. The rules are scheduled to be drafted and debated in the course of this year. This board will also oversee the entire recreational cannabis program.

Under the newly passed legalization law, adults in Guam will be permitted to possess a maximum of an ounce of cannabis. Residents will also be allowed to grow six mature plants for their own recreational use.

Speaking at a press conference, Guerrero said that cannabis is the most used illicit drug, so the law was needed in order to regulate its use in order to protect minors and also benefit from its medicinal properties. She added that the new law will create a safer environment for the residents of the island territory.

It should be noted that Guam legalized medical marijuana back in 2014. However, the island has never licensed a testing lab, so the medical marijuana sector remains largely dormant. Home cultivation of recreational marijuana was also approved in 2018.

It is hoped that the legalization of recreational cannabis will add impetus to the efforts to operationalize the commercialization of cannabis both for medicinal and recreational purposes.

The cannabis law was passed without any stiff opposition. The only concern that was raised by some legislators regarded the federal status of cannabis. However, this matter was put to rest when supporters pointed out that the STATES Act was making its way through committees of Congress and this showed that the federal government would not interfere in any jurisdiction that had passed its own marijuana laws.

The STATES Act largely centers on making it possible for marijuana businesses to get access to banking and insurance services without any fear of federal repercussions upon the banks, credit unions and insurance companies that choose to do business with marijuana companies in the U.S. states and territories where marijuana is legal in some form.

The signing of the legalization bill makes Guam the second U.S. territory to legalize recreational marijuana. Northern Mariana Islands was the first territory to allow adult-use cannabis when it passed its cannabis law last year.

Sproutly Canada, Inc. (OTCQB: SRUTF) (CSE: SPR) (FRA: 38G) and Sugarmade, Inc. (OTCQB: SGMD) welcome Guam into the fold of jurisdictions that have enacted laws to regulate the cannabis industry in order to tap the opportunities presented by this nascent sector.

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