Signed by Governor Brian Sandoval

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to pass a bill that establishes a framework for medical marijuana dispensaries and the regulation of the medical marijuana industry.

Highlights:

• Requires individuals applying to operate a “medical marijuana establishment” to submit the prescribed Health Division of the Department of Health and Human Services application form, including, but not limited to, the following information (Sec. 10): 
• The legal name of the proposed “medical marijuana establishment”;
• The physical address of the proposed “medical marijuana establishment”;
• Evidence that the applicant controls at least $250,000 in liquid assets to cover the initial costs of opening the proposed “medical marijuana establishment”; and
• Evidence that the applicant owns the property or has the written permission of the property owner to operate on the location which the proposed medical marijuana establishment will be located. 

• Requires individuals to submit the following fees for licensure of “medical marijuana establishments”, including, but not limited to, the following fees (Sec. 12):
• A fee of $30,000 for the initial issuance of a “medical marijuana establishment” registration certificate for  a “medical marijuana dispensary”; and
• A fee of $5,000 for the renewal of a “medical marijuana establishment” registration certificate for a “medical marijuana dispensary”;
• A one-time, non-refundable application fee of $5,000; and
• A varying fee for the actual costs incurred by the Division in processing the application, including, conducting background checks. 

• Defines “medical marijuana establishment” by any of the following terms (Sec. 8.3): 
• An independent testing laboratory; 
• A cultivation facility; 
• A facility for the production of edible marijuana products or marijuana-infused products. 
• A “medical marijuana dispensary”; or 
• A business that has registered with the Division and paid the requisite fees to act as more than one of the types of businesses listed above. 

• Defines “medical marijuana dispensary” as a business that is registered with the Division and acquires, possesses, delivers, transfers, transports, supplies, sells, or dispenses marijuana or related supplies and educational materials to the holder of a valid registry identification card (Sec. 8). 

• Establishes a 2 percent excise tax on wholesale and retail sales of marijuana, edible marijuana products, and marijuana infused products (Sec. 24.4).

• Requires 75 percent of tax revenues from the medical marijuana excise tax to go toward education-related funding and 25 percent go towards the costs of carrying out the provisions of the bill (Sec. 24.4).

• Limits the number of medical marijuana establishment registration certificates granted in a given county by the following amounts (Sec. 11):
• No more than 40 certificates in a county whose population is 700,000 or more;
• No more than 10 certificates in a county whose population is 100,000 or more but less than 700,000;
• No more than 2 certificates in a county whose population is 55,000 or more but less than 100,000; and
• No more than 1 certificate in a county whose population is less than 55,000.

• Prohibits an individual who holds a medical marijuana registry identification card, or his or her primary caregiver, from cultivating, growing, or producing marijuana if a dispensary opens in his or her county of residence, unless (Sec. 22):
• The individual was legally growing or producing marijuana on or before July 1, 2013;
• The dispensary that opened in that individual’s county of residence does not provide the quantity or strain or marijuana necessary to treat his or her specific condition;
• The individual is unable to travel to a medical marijuana dispensary because of illness or lack of transportation; or
• The non-existence of an operating dispensary within 25 miles of the individual when the individual first applied for his or her registry identification card.

• Classifies the attempt to counterfeit or forge a medical marijuana registration identification card as a Category E felony (Sec. 1).

• Increases the amount of usable marijuana an eligible medical marijuana user can possess, deliver, or produce, from 1 ounce to 2.5 ounces in any 14-day period (Sec. 22).

• Increases the amount of marijuana plants an eligible medical marijuana user can possess, deliver, or produce from 3 plants to 12 plants, regardless of whether the marijuana plants are mature or immature (Sec. 22).

• Prohibits a medical marijuana establishment from being located within 1,000 feet of an existing K-12 public or private school, or within 300 feet of an existing community facility (Sec. 10).

Full Bill Text