Rhode Island governor to propose legalizing recreational marijuana

Facing the “inevitable” prospect of being encircled by states that have legalized recreational marijuana, Gov. Gina Raimondo will propose this week that Rhode Island do the same.

“I will say, I do this with reluctance,” she told The Journal last week. “I have resisted this for the four years I’ve been governor. … Now, however, things have changed, mainly because all of our neighbors are moving forward” with legalization.

The proposal, included in her budget plan for the fiscal year beginning July 1, would create one of the most regulated recreational pot industries in the country, the governor said, aimed at reducing the health and safety problems experienced in some of the 10 other states that have approved recreational use in recent years.

For instance, it would prohibit home-growing of recreational pot, now allowed in Massachusetts, Maine and Vermont, and ban high-potency products from recreational store shelves, such as “dabs,” which are concentrated resins that are smoked.

The proposal would also require that single servings of popular pot edibles such as gummies, brownies or cookies contain no more than 5 milligrams of THC, the psychotropic compound in marijuana. [Read more at The Herald News]