House Democrats responsible for legalizing low-dose THC products said on Tuesday the under-the-radar approach that seemingly took Republicans by surprise was a necessary gambit to fully legalizing marijuana in the future.
“We absolutely did this on purpose. It was an intentional step forward,” said House Majority Leader Ryan Winkler, DFL-Golden Valley, who authored another bill that fully legalized marijuana but failed to gain traction in the Republican-controlled Senate.
The provision was tucked into a large health and human services bill and legalizes the production and sale of edible products with tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC. The food and beverages can only be sold to people over 21 and with no more than 5 milligrams of THC per serving — about half the dose allowed in other states with legal marijuana — or 50 milligrams per package.
It was signed into law by the governor in early June but went largely unnoticed by the public until the day before it went into effect on July 1.
“Sometimes legislation benefits from a lot of publicity. Sometimes legislation benefits from the ability to do the work more quietly, but it was all done in the public eye,” Winkler said when asked why Democrats didn’t publicize a bill they’re now all celebrating.
House Dems on edibles: ‘We absolutely did this on purpose’ (Minnesota Reformer)