Delaware House Bill 334
Session 152
An Act To Amend Titles 4 And 30 Of The Delaware Code Relating To Marijuana.
Became Law
Signed by Governor on Jul 17, 2024
Sponsors
6 Sponsors
Edward S. Osienski
Trey Paradee
Peter C. Schwartzkopf
Paul S. Baumbach
Russell Huxtable
Brian Pettyjohn
First Action
Mar 7, 2024
Latest Action
Jul 17, 2024
Origin Chamber
House
Type
Bill
Bill Number
334
State
Delaware
Session
152
checkPassed on March 19, 2024
Motion Text
3/5
House Roll Call Votes
Yes
Other
Yes
Other
Stephanie T. Bolden
Yes
Valerie Jones Giltner
No
Yes
Summary
This Act makes several technical and logistical corrections to the Delaware Marijuana Control Act.
Section 1 of this Act authorizes the Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Enforcement to conduct administrative inspections of premises licensed under Title 4 for the purpose of ensuring compliance with the provisions of Title 4, the rules and regulations of the Alcohol Beverage Control Commissioner, or the rules and regulations of the Marijuana Commissioner.
Section 2 of this Act creates definitions for the terms “conditional license” and “flowering plants.”
Section 3 of this Act changes the permissible hours of operation of a marijuana facility from 9 a.m. through 1 a.m. to 9 a.m. through 10 p.m. on Mondays through Saturdays.
Section 4 of this Act gives enforcement powers to the Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Enforcement and permits administrative inspections of premises licensed under Chapter 13 of Title 4.
Section 5 of this Act removes the power of the Commissioner to create rules and regulations to gather consumer data to track compliance with possession limits.
Section 6 of this Act makes the following changes to the application selection process: (1) it removes the requirement that the process be varied to account for geographic distribution or population density; (2) it removes a requirement for an applicant to provide information as to the suitability of the proposed location for the facilities; (3) it removes the requirement for an attestation signed by a bona fide labor organization that the applicant has entered a labor peace agreement with the organization (this requirement is instead moved to the criteria for conditional licensure in Section 13 of this Act); (4) it moves the requirement for the creation of identification badges from marijuana establishments to the Commissioner and permits the Commissioner to require a fee for each badge; (5) requires that employees complete training approved by the Commissioner in recognizing valid identification cards; and (6) specifies that agents of a marijuana establishment are subject to all standards and requirements of regulations adopted by the Commissioner.
Section 7 of this Act removes a provision for retail store licenses that specifies that a properly registered compassion center that is issued a retail marijuana store license is considered a business registration separate and distinct from the compassion center registration. It also removes the ability for a licensee or employee of a retail marijuana store to detain and question an individual that the employee believes is under 21 years old and is believed to be exhibiting fraudulent identification to attempt to obtain retail marijuana or a retail marijuana product.
Section 8 of this Act corrects a typographical error and clarifies the definition of a cannabis plant grow canopy area.
Section 9 of this Act changes the criteria for social equity applicants to remove a Delaware residency requirement and add that a marijuana-related conviction or adjudication of delinquency must have been under the laws of Delaware.
Section 10 adds a source of funding that the Commissioner is to investigate that may support social equity applicants.
Section 11 of this Act removes a prohibition on microbusiness applicants from possessing more than 1,000 marijuana plants each month and a Delaware residency requirement.
Section 12 of this Act repeals a provision allowing for the grant of a conditional license to microbusiness applicants, as in Section 13 of this Act, a new section 1345 of Title 4 authorizes the grant of conditional licenses to applicants who meet specified criteria for licensure.
Section 13 of this Act makes technical corrections to conform to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual, prohibits the grant of multiple licenses of any type where the grant would result in the applicant or other person with a financial interest in the application owning more than one business entity of the license type, authorizes the Commissioner to grant a conditional license to any applicant, specifies criteria that must be met for the Commissioner to grant an active license, details requirements for background checks, and makes information received by the Commissioner during the application or background check process confidential and exempt from the Delaware Freedom of Information Act.
Section 14 of this Act limits the prohibition on the transfer of social equity licenses to people who would not meet the criteria for the issuance of a social equity license so that licensees may transfer such licenses after three years.
Section 15 of this Act adds support for social equity applicants with select business-related expenses to the list of areas for which funding from the Justice Reinvestment Fund is to be appropriated to administer grants, contracts, services, or initiatives.
Section 16 of this Act makes changes to Title 30 relating to taxes on retail marijuana establishments.
This Act also makes technical corrections to conform to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
This Act requires passage by a 3/5 majority because it authorizes the Commissioner to charge a fee for identification badges.
Bill Text
Sort by most recent
07/17/2024
Office of the Governor
Signed by Governor
05/21/2024
Senate
Passed By Senate. Votes: 16 YES 5 NO
05/15/2024
Senate
Reported Out of Committee (Health & Social Services) in Senate with 7 On Its Merits
03/19/2024
Senate
Assigned to Health & Social Services Committee in Senate
03/19/2024
House
Passed By House. Votes: 29 YES 10 NO 2 ABSENT
03/19/2024
House
Amendment HA 1 to HB 334 - Passed In House by Voice Vote
03/19/2024
House
Amendment HA 1 to HB 334 - Introduced and Placed With Bill
03/12/2024
House
Reported Out of Committee (Revenue & Finance) in House with 6 On Its Merits
03/07/2024
House
Introduced and Assigned to Revenue & Finance Committee in House
Sources
Open States
Record Created
Mar 8, 2024 12:09:26 AM
Record Updated
Aug 29, 2024 6:31:31 PM