Discussion:
On July 1, 2022, the State of Minnesota made it legal to sell certain edibles and beverages infused with Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the cannabis ingredient extracted from hemp. This law was passed by the MN State Legislature as part of Chapter 98, Article 13, Section 151.72.
The new law was intended to reign in the selling of delta-8, a substance manufactured from hemp derived cannabinoid that has similar intoxicating effects as the more commonly known cannabinoid delta-9 in edible products. Unfortunately, the law actually authorized certain amounts of both delta-8 and delta-9 in edible products as opposed to just regulating delta-8. The full impact of this law has yet to be identified. Currently legislation is being drafted at the state level to try and address the unintended consequences of this legislation and will likely modify whatever decision this council makes.
On August 16, 2022, City Council imposed a moratorium on the sale of THC products until December 31, 2022. During the course of their discussion, council had requested staff to generally look at our tobacco ordinance as a guide to drafting a future THC ordinance.
As such, the proposed Ordinance O2022-027 is based upon our current tobacco ordinance and uses much of the same framework allowing for regulation and licensing of the sale of THC products. There was also council discussion regarding establishing a municipal-managed retail store, but due to the moratorium time constraints imposed by council this was not seriously considered.
The general aspects of the ordinance include:
1) Requires a revokable yearly license to sell THC products under certain circumstances including the holding of a concurrent tobacco license, and with appropriate training of staff.
2) Licenses can be denied if an applicant is under 21 years old, has any conviction or license revocation in the last 5 years regarding any THC product, fails to provide complete and accurate information on their application, owes any monies to any state governmental agency, is prohibited from owning a license by law, and who has failed a compliance check or inspection, or violated other THC laws including the city imposed moratorium in the previous 5 years.
3) Prohibits sales to those under 21 years of age, through vending machines or other self-service means, through any mobile or non-permanent structure, or in any other way prohibited by any other law or regulation. In addition, it makes possession by those under 21, attempted purchase by those under 21, the use of false identification in the attempt to purchase and providing “samples” all illegal.
4) Requires licensed premises to be available for inspection and acknowledges compliance checks by the city at least yearly.
5) Outlines a process for addressing violations.