Virginia’s legislators have once again approved legislation to create a regulated and taxed cannabis market, and with both chambers that support identical measures, the proposal is quite different than certain to reach GOV. Glenn Youngkin’s desk when the General Assembly is postponed later this month.

At the centerpiece of the session on Tuesday, both chambers had taken identical measures to legalize retail sales of marijuana for adults 21 and older.

House Bill 2485Sponsored by Del Paul Krizek, D-Fairfax, cleaned the house in the afternoon with limited two-party support, while Senate Bill 970carried by Senator Aaron Rouse, D-Virginia Beach, passed Friday on a strict 21-19 party line.

Del Chris Obenshain, R-Montgomery, a local prosecutor, and part. Will Morefield, R-Tazewell, were the two lonely Republicans who supported the house measure.

“I have been consistent in my support for a legal and regulated adult market for cannabis in Virginia,” said Obenshain, who voted for a similar proposal last year. “Status quo is confusing for individuals and companies, and the lack of regulation or enforcement is dangerous for everyone involved,” he said.

Although it grew public and legislative support for a legal market, Youngkin has signaled that he remains firmly against, with reference to concerns about crime, mental health and legislative challenges. His administration has repeatedly dismissed the driving force to expand legal cannabis in Virginia, making a veto anything but certain.

“It is fantastic that this bill receives Republican votes, but the one that is important is the governor, and yet he is unwilling to realize that it is 2025 and not in 1975, and it is time to work over time together to regulate retail sales to adults, “Krizek said Tuesday.

“Failure to do so just anchor an uncertain, often dangerous illegal market. This is both a consumer protection problem and a public health. A safer alternative will make for safer communities. ”

Proponents are still hopeful that the governor will change the idea in the coming weeks.

“Marijuana Justice and our Cannajustice coalition are inspired to see leaders for both the Virginia house and the Senate Connect to the hard work in the last session,” said Chelsea Higgs Wise, CEO of Marijuana Justice. “Both bills prioritize tested products and show the need for a fairly regulated market as part of public health and security.”

The struggle for legalization of cannabis in Virginia has been in the creation, characterized by political shifts, legal gray areas and ongoing battles on how – and if – to establish a retail market.

In 2021, Virginia made history as the first southern state to legalize small-scale marijuana holdings and home cultivation for adults 21 and older. According to the law, residents can grow up to four plants at home and have up to an ounce marijuana in public.

But while legalization was adopted under democratic control, legislators never completed a plan to regulate sales before Republicans took control of the governor’s manor and short delegate’s house in 2022.

It left Virginia in an unusual situation: Cannabis is legal to own and grow, but there is no legal way to buy or sell it outside the state’s medical marijuana program. Without a retail frame, the underground market has flourished, with unregulated pop-up stores and online “gift” companies operating in legal limbo.

A 2024 Roanoke College Poll Found that 63% of Virginians support politics that help small cannabis companies to compete with pharmaceutical companies and medical dispensing, while only 15% oppose them.

Democrats and cannabis advocates continue to drive for a licensed, regulated market to manage this gap and claim that clear rules would protect consumers, generate tax revenue and prevent illegal sales. The bills this year are trying to do just that by creating a state -regulated system of licensed retailers and producers, similar to those in other states with legal cannabis markets.

But Youngkin’s office Repeated In December, his attitude has not changed and set the stage for another veto, which the Democrats do not have enough votes to override. If that happens, the fight for Virginia’s cannabis marketplace may have to wait for the state’s next governor.

Despite Youngkin’s tough posture, Obenshain quoted the need to act sooner than later.

“While I would like to see stronger measures for public security, such as my proposal to limit driving under the influence of marijuana, I have supported this effort because I think it is imperative that we act now,” Obenshain said. “My voice is a signal that I will continue to have conversations with good faith with people on all pages of this issue to try to reach a compromise that works for Virginia.”