Michigan lawmakers are attempting to advance a pair of bills that would re-establish a legal foundation for medical cannabis dispensaries and allow the sale of infused products.
But concerns from the law enforcement community have delayed the measures.
Both bills have already cleared the House, and a key legislator initially expected that the Senate would more forward with them by the end of last month. Now, however, the Senate is hoping to take up the bills on Oct. 22, as legislators are still discussing the legislation with law enforcement officials.
In February, a state Supreme Court ruling gave county prosecutors the power to shut down MMJ dispensaries cited as a “public nuisance,” because many dispensary owners have been skirting the law and abusing their positions as cannabis retailers. State legislators are trying to figure out the best way to cull the dispensary herd so that law-abiding shops can remain open, while the “bad players” get shut down.
The Michigan Court of Appeals found in July that edibles are not a permissible form of medicine under state law, which then left other infused products hanging in a legal gray area.