Three D.C. Medical Cannabis Bills Scheduled for Public Hearing July 2
- The District of Columbia has scheduled a public hearing on July 2 for three medical cannabis bills aimed at extending license timelines, creating a retailer craft preparation endorsement, and allowing certain alcohol manufacturers to produce nonalcoholic cannabis beverages.
- Bill B26-0346 proposes extending conditional medical cannabis license expiration dates by one year for various license types to help holders secure permanent locations and maintain market participation.
- Bill B26-0259 aims to establish a new endorsement for medical cannabis retailers to prepare specific products like edibles and topicals on-site, with strict manufacturing and storage restrictions.
- Bill B26-0654 would authorize certain alcohol manufacturers to produce nonalcoholic medical cannabis beverages, expand courier roles, introduce a medical cannabinoids import endorsement, and clarify related tax provisions.
Three separate medical cannabis bills have been scheduled for a public hearing on July 2 in Washington D.C., including measures to extend conditional license timelines, create a retailer craft preparation endorsement and allow certain alcohol manufacturers to produce nonalcoholic medical cannabis beverages.
The proposals—B26-0346, B26-0259 and B26-0654—were all introduced at the request of Mayor Muriel Bowser and sponsored by Council Chairman Phil Mendelson.
B26-0346, the Medical Cannabis Conditional Licensure Extension Amendment Act, would extend the expiration dates for conditional medical cannabis licenses by an additional year. The proposal applies to cultivation centers, retailers, internet retailers, manufacturers, couriers and testing laboratories. According to the mayor’s transmittal letter, the measure is meant to give conditional license holders more time to secure a permanent location and continue participating in the District’s legal medical cannabis market.
B26-0259, the Medical Cannabis Retailer Craft Preparation Endorsement Act, would create a new endorsement allowing licensed medical cannabis retailers to prepare certain products at their licensed premises. This would include edibles, topicals and prerolls, with restrictions on manufacturing practices, storage limits, floor space and product handling. Retailers would not be allowed to extract cannabinoids or use butane or explosive gas.
B26-0654, the Medical Cannabis Beverage Product Amendment Act, would create a medical cannabis beverage production endorsement, allowing certain alcohol manufacturers to produce nonalcoholic medical cannabis beverages for licensed medical cannabis manufacturers. The measure would also create a medical cannabinoids import endorsement, expand courier authority and clarify tax provisions related to medical cannabis and medical cannabis products.
All three bills were referred to the Committee of the Whole earlier this year after previously being referred to the Committee on Business and Economic Development. Notices of the July 2 public hearing were published in the D.C. Register on June 5.
If advanced, the measures would continue a broader effort by District officials to revise and expand D.C.’s regulated medical cannabis system, including changes to licensing timelines, product preparation rules, beverage production and business-to-business cannabis logistics.