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Virginia Leaders Strike Deal to Create Regulated Retail Cannabis Market

The compromise would fold a phased, safety-focused rollout and tax plan into the state budget so stores could open only if lawmakers approve the package by June 30.

FILE - Marijuana plants are close to harvest in a grow room at the Greenleaf Medical Cannabis facility in Richmond, Va., on June 17, 2021. As the Virginia General Assembly reaches the halfway point of this year’s session, one of the year’s most complicated issues — possible changes to the state’s new law legalizing recreational marijuana — has stalled in the GOP-controlled House. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, File)
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Overview

  • The agreement, announced Tuesday, sets a July 1, 2027 start date for retail sales but makes the plan dependent on inclusion in and passage of the two-year state budget by June 30.
  • Regulators would cap retail licenses at 350 statewide and phase their release so the Cannabis Control Authority can begin accepting applications in early 2027 to build testing and enforcement capacity.
  • The deal establishes a state tax starting at 6% that rises to 8% in 2029, allows localities to add 1%–3.5%, and directs revenue to early childhood, K–12, behavioral health and a Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Fund.
  • Consumer and public-health rules include testing and packaging standards, bans on products shaped to appeal to children, 1,000-foot buffers from sensitive sites, a 2-ounce purchase cap per transaction, and a $250 civil fine for public consumption.
  • The plan creates up to 100 microbusiness licenses and a business support team to aid operators from communities harmed by past enforcement, while officials say the phased rollout aims to undercut the entrenched illicit market.