Virginia becomes the first Southern state to pass legislation to legalize marijuana.

Virginia lawmakers on Saturday approved a bill that would legalize marijuana for recreation in 2024. The compromise bill, which slows down drug sales for three years, makes Virginia the first southern state to vote to legalize adult marijuana, joining 15 other states and the district. of Columbia. The bill has yet to be signed by Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam, who spoke out in favor of legalizing marijuana. “It was a lot of work to get here, but I would say we are on the way to a fair law that allows responsible adults to use cannabis,” State Senator Adam Ebbin told the Associated Press.

The House passed the legislative measure 48-43, while the Senate approved it 20-19. The bill was passed without a single Republican vote in one of the chambers. The bill, which would legalize the possession of a grain of marijuana or less by those 21 or older, requires the establishment of an independent agency to regulate the marijuana market. But lawmakers have ‘shown’, as the Richmond Times-Dispatch puts it, some important decisions about market regulation and the new criminal penalties for underage ownership and unregulated sales.

The bill was so controversial that seven Democrats in the House and one in the Senate did not support it. Several Democrats have said that waiting until 2024 to legalize possession and waiting until next year to make important decisions means the measure gives a short time to color communities affected disproportionately by criminalization. A particular concern is that Democrats may not control both chambers of state legislature, the Washington Post says. So, even if the Democrats celebrated the bill broadly, they also said they hope Northam will amend the legislation and send a more complete bill to lawmakers that could be considered later this year. “Virginia has just taken an important step in legalizing marijuana in our country,” said Northam spokeswoman Alena Yarmosky. “Governor Northam is grateful to the General Assembly for their hard work, and looks forward to improving this legislation.”