Oklahoma voters legalized medical cannabis by passing Question 788 in June of 2018, and emergency regulations were approved in August by then-governor, Mary Fallin.
On Monday, the Oklahoma Senate voted 43 to 5 to pass HB2612, a bill that would establish new regulations for the state’s medical cannabis industry.
The House voted to pass the bill with a 93 to 5 vote on February 28.
“We’ve gotta make sure that our businesses are protected,” said Governor Kevin Stitt in a news conference in January. “You know, the people spoke, and they passed medical marijuana last year, so we’ve gotta make sure that we regulate that.”
Also known as the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana and Patient Protection Act, or the marijuana Unity Bill, HB2612 provides rules for cannabis product testing, packaging, advertising, tracking, and other facets of the industry.
“We’ve gotta make sure that businesses can also perform,” said Stitt. “And businesses know how they’re going to drug test, how they’re going to provide a safe working environment for their employees and their manufacturing facilities, the trucks that are driving down our roads.”
Now that HB2612 has cleared Oklahoma’s full legislature, it will head to Governor Stitt’s desk for his signature.
