Mexico's Supreme Court has again agreed to an extension of the deadline to legalize cannabis, even with final legislation passed by the Senate. The Chamber of Deputies agreed on Wednesday to request another extension of the cannabis regulation deadline from Mexico's Supreme Court, with deputies asking for more time to improve the regulatory framework.
This is the last extension the court passed, as it found the ban on personal use and cultivation of cannabis unconstitutional in 2018 and ordered Congress to end the policy. The reform that legalizes cannabis already passed by the Senate and advanced this week by at least two committees of the Chamber of Deputies.
At the end of 2018, the Mexican court found the ban on personal use and cultivation of cannabis unconstitutional and told lawmakers to formally end criminalization by October 2019. Since then, the deadline has been pushed back several times at the request of lawmakers, most recently until December 15th of this year.
But now the court says lawmakers have until the end of the next session, which starts in February and ends on April 30, to pass the reform. This is the fourth deadline that the body imposes. First it was October 2019, then April 2020, then December 2020 and now April 2021.
Leaders of the House of Representatives claimed they needed a delay to review legislation passed by the Senate. However, this did not prevent several commissions from approving the project, with the Commission on Human Rights and Budget and Public Accounts having already considered it and advanced it in recent days, shortly before the new request for an extension of the deadline.
Mexican cannabis reform
Overall, the bill will establish a regulated cannabis market, allowing adults over the age of 18 to buy and carry up to 28 grams of cannabis. The legislation allows the cultivation of up to six plants for personal consumption and possession of more than 28 grams, but less than 200 grams, would be considered an offense punishable by a fine, but without imprisonment.
The legislation makes some attempts to mitigate the influence of large cannabis corporations. For example, it states that during the first five years after implementation, at least 40 percent of commercial cannabis licenses must be granted to indigenous, low-income, or historically marginalized communities. The Instituto Mexicano de Cannabis would be responsible for regulating the market and issuing licenses.
Public consumption of cannabis will be permitted, except in places where tobacco use is prohibited or at gatherings where minors under the age of 18 could be exposed. Families where more than one adult lives would be limited to cultivating a maximum of eight plants. The legislation also says that people “must not” use cannabis in homes where there are minors.
See the documentation here:
487683638-Mexico-Supreme-Court-Marijuana-Delay