Sununu drops opposition to legalizing marijuana in New Hampshire

New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu (R) has dropped his opposition to legalizing marijuana in the state, putting forward a pathway for a legalization bill to be approved. 

Sununu said in a Medium post on Friday that he previously said now was not the time to legalize marijuana as other states “rushed” to legalize it with “little guardrails.” He added that he recognizes that a majority of the state’s residents support legalization and change on the state’s policy is likely inevitable. 

“To ignore this reality would be shortsighted and harmful,” he said. “That is why, with the right policy and framework in place, I stand ready to sign a legalization bill that puts the State of NH in the drivers seat, focusing on harm reduction — not profits.”

Sununu explained that his proposal would allow the state to control distribution and access to marijuana, keep it away from children and schools, control marketing and messaging, allow towns to ban marijuana shops if they choose and keep it sales tax-free. 

Under his plan, the state would control the marketing, sales and distribution of marijuana —similar to how it controls liquor sales — thus, taking away the need for any additional taxes. He said this would also prevent children from being “bombarded” with commercials, digital ads and billboards daily. 

He said the state should also avoid “marijuana miles,” a city or town being densely populated with marijuana shops. 

Sununu claimed he would veto any future legalization bills that do not include his proposed provisions. He said he is willing to work with the legislature to create a legalization bill that “retains the fabric and culture” of New Hampshire. 

“This is a long-term, sustainable solution for our state. I am supportive of legalizing marijuana in the right way — with this legislature — rather than risk a poorly thought out framework that inevitably could pass under future governors or legislatures,” he said. 

The governor noted in his post that he signed legislation in 2017 to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana and the state has already expanded access to medical marijuana and created a pathway for old marijuana possession convictions to be annulled. 

He told the Manchester-based ABC affiliate WMUR in an interview that marijuana sold illegally is increasingly being laced with other drugs, so legalization could bring more safety to marijuana use. 

Almost half of all states have legalized recreational marijuana, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. New Hampshire, which has a medicinal program, is the only New England state that has not legalized it.