The New Hampshire Senate, as expected, rejected a recreational marijuana legalization bill that would have created state-run stores.
The Senate killed House Bill 1598 on Thursday without debate by a voice vote, the Associated Press reported, only a week after a Senate committee essentially decided the bill’s fate by rejecting the measure.
Opponents were unfazed by the fact that recreational marijuana markets surround New Hampshire in Maine, Massachusetts and Vermont.
“I’m not ashamed of that, I’m proud of that,” said Republican Sen. Bob Giuda, according to the AP.
The measure was seen as problematic by industry groups because it would have meant that state employees would be selling products that are illegal federally.
Under the bill, the state Liquor Commission would have regulated the cultivation and sale of marijuana in at least 10 state-run stores, the AP reported.
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The Senate also defeated by a 15-9 vote a separate measure that would have allowed home cultivation.
Vermont was a model for first allowing home grow, then later legalizing a recreational marijuana market.
