November 9th, 2022 by WCBC Radio

Annapolis, MD – Today the Yes on 4 campaign celebrated the passage of Question 4 to legalize cannabis for adult-use in Maryland. As a result of the ballot question’s passage, the use of marijuana in the state by an individual who is at least 21 years of age will become legal on or after July 1, 2023.

“Tonight voters in Maryland made history by bringing the era of failed marijuana prohibition to an end,” said Yes on 4 Campaign Chair Eugene Monroe. “For decades, the unequally enforced criminalization of cannabis in Maryland inflicted damage upon Black and Brown communities. We must turn the page on that disturbing history by centering Maryland’s legal marijuana market around racial equity. Cannabis legalization will create good-paying jobs, open up doors for small business owners, and generate new tax revenue for our state. Legislators in Maryland have a responsibility to ensure people in historically underserved communities are able to enjoy those benefits.”

“With Marylanders’ support of Question 4, the state will finally end the failed era of cannabis prohibition and take a more just and equitable approach towards cannabis policy,” said Marijuana Policy Project Senior Policy Analyst Olivia Naugle. “The passage of Question 4 is a huge victory for criminal justice reform and racial justice in Maryland. It will save thousands of Marylanders from arrests and further criminalization for cannabis possession, and it will begin to repair the decades of harm cannabis prohibition has caused, disproportionately in communities of color, by expunging records and reinvesting back into those communities. We look forward to working closely with Maryland lawmakers to ensure that the implementation of legalization is centered around equity.”

The Yes on 4 campaign launched on September 8, 2022 to help get out the vote in support of Ballot Question 4. 

 

Due to laws already passed in the state legislature, as a result of Question 4’s passage, Maryland will:

• Create a Cannabis Business Assistance Fund to help minority- and women-owned businesses seeking to enter the legal cannabis market. 
• Expunge records of those who have possession of cannabis as their only charge and end the incarceration of those currently held in prison on cannabis convictions. 
• Create a Community Reinvestment and Repair Fund, which will provide financial support to organizations that serve communities historically affected by the war on drugs. 

 

The regulatory and oversight structure of the adult use program will now go to the Maryland General Assembly for consideration in the 2023 legislative session.