If Florida voters legalize adult-use marijuana later this year, a Republican state lawmaker wants to ensure that only limited-potency cannabis will be allowed in stores.
Florida Rep. Ralph Massullo introduced a bill on Friday that would impose a potency cap on any future voter-approved adult-use cannabis market.
Massullo’s House Bill 1269 proposes a 10% THC cap on cannabis “in a form for smoking” and a 60% THC cap for concentrates.
Marijuana edibles would be capped at 200 milligrams of THC per package and 10 milligrams of THC per serving.
Massullo’s bill faces uncertain prospects in the Florida Legislature, where previous efforts to cap cannabis flower at 10% THC have failed.
As written, the proposal would only apply to a future adult-use market.
Of course, it’s still uncertain whether voters in Florida – which boasts the country’s biggest medical-only marijuana market – will even see an adult-use legalization measure on their November ballots.
A legalization effort called Smart & Safe Florida collected enough valid signatures from registered voters last year to qualify for the 2024 ballot.
But the state Supreme Court is currently weighing a constitutional challenge against the measure filed by Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody.
Trulieve contributed nearly all of the $39.5 million funding behind Smart & Safe, according to campaign finance records.
Moody has publicly claimed the legalization push is a Trulieve effort to monopolize legal cannabis in Florida.
If the state Supreme Court does allow the legalization measure to proceed, 60% of voters will need to vote yes in order for it to become law.
Efforts to cap the strength of cannabis products via legislation have generally gone nowhere in the U.S., although regulated cannabis markets often limit the amount of THC allowed in edibles.
