The Michigan House of Representatives [official website] approved medical marijuana legislation [HB 4209; HB 4827] Wednesday to clarify the legal regulation of the medical marijuana industry. The “medical marihuana facilities licensing act” provides the licensing requirements for businesses to grow, sell and pay taxes on medical marijuana. The “marihuana tracking act” allows the state to monitor medical marijuana providers and issue sanctions for non-compliance with safety and procedural requirements. The legislators also passed amendments to the state’s “Michigan medical marihuana act” [HB 4210] to clarify that the act covers medical marijuana in all forms, including oil, food items and pills.

The legalization of medical marijuana [JURIST backgrounder] and decriminalization of marijuana possession has gained support in recent years, however, marijuana remains illegal under federal law. In June Delaware Governor Jack Markell joined 19 other states and the District of Columbia when he signed into law a measure that decriminalizes the possession and use of small amounts of marijuana. Also in June the Colorado Supreme Court unanimously affirmed [JURIST report] a lower court decision that employers’ zero tolerance drug policies are not preempted by Colorado’s legalization of medical marijuana. In early March a bipartisan group of three US Senators introduced a bill [JURIST report] that would reclassify marijuana as a Schedule II drug, which would loosen governmental regulation, and notably, allow states to enact their own medical marijuana statutes without federal interference. A few days later, an identical companion bill was introduced [JURIST report] in the US House of Representatives.