Delaware: Market and legal data analysis of the cannabis sector

2nd April 2024: US - Delaware: House Bill (HB) 285 has been passed by the Senate and now heads to the governor. HB 285 would significantly expand access to medical cannabis by allowing access to anyone with a “diagnosed medical condition or disease for which a health-care practitioner determines a patient would receive palliative or therapeutic benefit from the use of medical marijuana”, and by allowing people aged 65 or older to self-certify that they are using cannabis for medical purposes.
13th February 2024: US - Delaware: Delaware marijuana commissioner Robert Coupe says that the expected date of the issuance of recreational cannabis retail licences will be March 2025 – instead of November 2024, as initially believed – press reports. Coupe said the reason for delay is that necessary documentation was not filed in time. Regulations that would allow medical cannabis providers to convert their licences to also provide recreational cannabis are also being considered, though they might not be granted before new recreational cannabis licences are issued.
26th January 2024: US - Delaware: The House has passed House Bill (HB) 285, which now heads to the Senate. HB 285 would significantly expand access to medical cannabis by allowing access to anyone with a "diagnosed medical condition or disease for which a health-care practitioner determines a patient would receive palliative or therapeutic benefit from the use of medical marijuana" and by allowing people 65 years of age or older to self-certify that they are using cannabis for medical purposes.
24th April 2023: US - Delaware: Democratic governor John Carney has a stated that he will allow House Bill (HB) 1 and HB 2, collectively known as the Delaware Marijuana Control Act, to be enacted into Delaware law without his signature. HB 1 will remove all penalties for adult (21+) possession, use, sharing and purchasing of up to 1 oz of cannabis and accessories. The definition of “personal use quantity” would be updated to include not only 1 oz or less of cannabis leaf, but also equivalent amounts of cannabis product in other forms (up to 12 g of concentrated cannabis, or cannabis products containing up to 750 mg of delta-9 THC). Home cultivation and consuming cannabis in public will remain prohibited. Meanwhile, HB 2 will establish a framework to regulate the growing, commercial sale, possession and taxing of adult-use cannabis. The bill will also make the Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Enforcement responsible for regulation of the market under the newly created office of Marijuana Control Commissioner, and set a 15% sales tax on adult-use cannabis, with an exemption for medical cannabis products. However, local municipalities will maintain control over where and when cannabis businesses can operate in their jurisdictions, or to prohibit cannabis business operations altogether through the enactment of an ordinance or ballot measure.
29th March 2023: US - Delaware: House Bill 1 has passed the Senate and gone to governor John Carney’s desk for approval. It would remove all penalties for adult (21+) possession, use, sharing and purchasing of up to 1 oz of cannabis and accessories. The definition of “personal use quantity” would be updated to include not only 1 oz or less of cannabis leaf, but also equivalent amounts of cannabis product in other forms (up to 12 g of concentrated cannabis, or cannabis products containing up 750 mg of delta-9 THC).

A companion bill, House Bill 2, establishing a framework to regulate the growing, commercial sale, possession and taxing of adult-use cannabis, has also passed the Senate and gone to the governor’s desk. It would make the Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Enforcement responsible for regulation of the market under the newly created office of Marijuana Control Commissioner, and set a 15% sales tax on adult-use cannabis, with an exemption for medical cannabis products.
13th March 2023: US - Delaware: House Bill (HB) 2 has passed the House and now heads to the Senate. HB 2, as a companion measure for HB 1, would set up a framework to regulate the growth, commercial sales and possession of adult-use cannabis.
8th March 2023: US - Delaware: House Bill 1 has passed the House and now moves to the Senate. It would remove all penalties for possession, use, sharing and purchasing of up to 1 oz of cannabis and accessories by over-21s. The “personal use quantity” would be updated to include up to 1 oz of cannabis (including flowers and leaves), and equivalent amounts of cannabis products in other forms – up to 12 g of concentrated cannabis, or cannabis products containing up to 750 mg of delta-9 THC.
31st October 2022: US - Delaware: Governor John Carney vetoed House Bill (HB) 276, which would have allowed medical cannabis patients to possess firearms. Federal law prohibits unlawful users of controlled substances from acquiring or possessing firearms. Since federal law prohibits cannabis for any purpose, this would apply to medical cannabis patients. HB 276 sought to make clear that such a restriction would not apply under state law to medical cannabis patients.
8th June 2022: US - Delaware: The House was unable to override the governor's veto of House Bill (HB) 371, which would have removed all penalties for adult (21+) possession of up to 1 oz of cannabis. Therefore, the bill is dead.
25th May 2022: US - Delaware: House Bill 371, which would legalise the possession and sharing of up to 1 oz of cannabis by adults (21+), has been vetoed by governor John Carney. However, the bill garnered enough votes to override the governor’s veto, and the bill’s sponsor is weighing up the next steps, press reports.
20th May 2022: US - Delaware: House Bill (HB) 372, a bill to legalise sales of recreational cannabis, fell short of the votes needed to pass and has failed. Although the vote was 23 in favour of passage, 15 against, and 3 abstentions, it fell short of the three-fifths necessary for passage. HB 371, a separate bill that would legalise the possession of up to 1 oz of cannabis by adults (21+) and would allow for gifting among adults if no form of remuneration is paid, has passed both chambers already and is awaiting the governor's signature.

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