Mexico Legalization Plan Unveiled, Vote Expected Soon

Mexico is poised to become the third country to fully legalize adult-use cannabis, with lawmakers expected to vote on the bill as early as this week, according to a Marijuana Moment report. The bill’s language was released to the public last week.

Lawmakers are pushing to pass the bill in time to meet a deadline set by the Supreme Court, who last year declared that cannabis prohibition is unconstitutional and gave lawmakers less than a year to pass rules and regulations for the country’s impending cannabis marketplace.

The proposed market appears to be aimed at social equity and the limiting of foreign investment — here are the major takeaways from Mexico’s cannabis legalization proposal:

• Adults 18+ would have access to the legal marketplace, able to possess and purchase the plant
• The bill will allow up to four homegrown plants per adult
• No social-use/public consumption (private use only)
• All plants or seeds must be registered, even for home grows
• The bill calls for a new agency, the “Cannabis Institute,” to handle licensing and regulations
• Licensing priority would be given to low-income individuals, smaller farmers, and indigenous communities
• No vertical integration allowed for cannabis corporations
• Commercial cannabis plants must be grown pesticide-free
• Strict packaging rules would leave little room for brand expression
• Cannabis advertisements would be banned
• Edibles/beverages would only be available for medical cannabis patients

Some amendments are likely for the legalization bill’s final form, but lawmakers are expected to pass the legislation.

President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, whose successful election campaign last year was based in part on a platform of drug decriminalization, supports the bill. Mexico legalized medical cannabis in 2015.