SALT LAKE CITY -- Utah lawmakers will meet for a special session Monday, and medical cannabis is expected to be a major focus.
Gov. Herbertcalled the session earlier this month and said he wants the state's medical cannabis program to be off the ground by March 2020.
Lawmakers are expected to make changes to the medical cannabis bill passed to replace the voter-approved Proposition 2.
Those changes include eliminating dispensaries run by county health departments, changing packaging requirements and other adjustments.
The "central fill" plan where health departments would distribute the medical cannabis ran into trouble in Davis and Salt Lake counties after attorneys for both recommended against the plan.
The legislature will also discuss census funding, the governor's press release stated, "and making several other technical adjustments." See below for the other topics on the agenda:
- Issues to be addressed during the special session include the following:
- Amendments to medical cannabis laws to repeal requirements regarding a state
central fill pharmacy and other amendments necessary to ensure the efficient and safe implementation and operation of the state’s medical cannabis program; - Amendments to the Utah Election Code regarding the date of the 2020 primary election and technical amendments;
- Amendments to the Alcoholic Beverage Control Act regarding the transportation and storage of certain heavy beer prior to November 1, 2019;
- Legislative approval of and appropriations for the settlement of lawsuits against the state;
- Amendments to certain tax incentives regarding the review required by an independent certified public accountant and technical amendments;
- Appropriations for the 2020 United States Census and "[f]or the Senate to consent to appointments made by the Governor."
