Salt Lake City, UT: The first of Utah’s fourteen licensed medical cannabis retail providers opened for business this week, just one day after Republican Gov. Gary Herbert signed legislation finalizing regulations for the state’s nascent access program.
On Sunday, the Governor signed Senate Bill 121 into law. The legislation, which further amends Utah’s two-year-old medical cannabis law, includes updated regulations regarding the packaging of raw cannabis, among other changes. That same day, officials instituted the state’s online verification system for its patient registry.
On Monday, the state’s first medical cannabis retailer opened for business in Salt Lake City. Two additional retailers are expected to open within the coming months.
Voters in 2018 approved Proposition 2, which legalized the use and dispensing of medical cannabis to qualified patients. Shortly thereafter, lawmakers held a special legislative session where they voted to repeal and replace the initiative law with their own, more restrictive legislation. Since that time, lawmakers have made several additional changes to the law.
For more information, contact Carly Wolf, NORML State Policies Director.