The New Hampshire Senate voted 12-10 on Thursday to table a House-approved cannabis legalization bill, WMUR reports. The move marks the likely defeat of adult-use cannabis legislative efforts this year in New Hampshire, despite the House having passed two separate legalization proposals this year.
According to Senate Majority Leader Regina Birdsell (R), Republican lawmakers voted down the proposal because Gov. Kelly Ayotte (R) opposes cannabis legalization reforms.
“The governor will veto any cannabis bill that comes to her desk.” — Birdsell, in the report
The New Hampshire House passed its first cannabis legalization bill this year in February, then followed it up several weeks later by passing a second proposal. The second proposal was more restrictive than the previous proposal, leaving out cannabis retail and home grows entirely, but the tempered reforms still went too far for Republican state senators.
Previously, the House and Senate have each passed their own legalization proposals but the bodies were never able to reconcile the proposals under a single bill.
Meanwhile, a poll last summer found that 65% of New Hampshire residents either “strongly” or “somewhat” support legalizing adult-use cannabis in the state.
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