When state Sen. Lashrecse Aird (D–Henrico) learned that Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger had rewritten the cannabis retail market bill that she and others spent years crafting, she couldn't believe it.
"There is no exaggeration when I say I was completely shell-shocked," Aird said in a phone interview Wednesday.
Spanberger's substitute bill proposes to start legal recreational sales for people 21 and over on July 1, 2027, six months after the launch date the Legislature agreed on. It also includes harsher criminal penalties, reduces how many stores can initially open and other revisions.
Aird and Del. Paul Krizek (D–Fairfax), who carried the House's version of the bill, said they expected amendments and could accept some of the changes. But they said the governor's measure falls short of the final bill lawmakers sent to her.
Democrats are now weighing their options, including potentially rejecting Spanberger's substitute and sending the governor back the version they passed — which Aird and Krizek agreed would be the worst-case scenario.
"For me, unfortunately, it will be a very last-minute decision as to which action we are forced — and quite frankly, it will be forced — to take, but I'm not willing to affirm that direction until all options are exhausted," Aird told VPM News.
Without sharing additional details, Aird told VPM News she's exploring if any procedural avenues exist that could let legislators "take into consideration the governor's recommendations while also considering the policy positions that the General Assembly sent to her desk."
Aird and Krizek say they will discuss what will happen next with fellow Democrats, but because Spanberger sent back a substitute bill and not line-by-line amendments, legislators will likely need to vote on the legislation as a whole.
The General Assembly can approve Spanberger's rewrite or reject the substitute and send back the version that originally went to the governor, forcing her to either sign it, veto the bill or let it become law without her signature.
With Democrats only having a 21-19 majority in the Virginia Senate, they don't have the two-thirds majority to override Spanberger's amendments.
"The General Assembly has been leading on marijuana legalization for years, and Governor Spanberger is committed to working with patrons to finish the work," a spokesperson for the governor wrote in a statement.
"Over the past several months, the Governor has heard directly from community advocates, law enforcement professionals, and consumers about the importance of getting this right."
The governor's spokesperson did not answer whether Spanberger would sign or veto the legislation that was initially sent to her desk if lawmakers reject the substitute.
If a bill is finalized, Virginia's yearslong stay in marijuana purgatory will finally have an end date.
A Democrat-led General Assembly passed legislation in 2021 that let people 21 and over possess small amounts of marijuana and have up to four cannabis plants in their homes starting in July of that year.
Republicans foiled Democrats' plans to hold a vote the following year to set up the regulatory framework of a legal cannabis market, allowing Virginians to have marijuana for recreational use — but no legal way of buying it.
When Spanberger took office, Democrats who worked on cannabis legislation for years finally saw a path for a retail marketplace.
Virginia lawmakers passed legislation on the last day of the 2026 General Assembly session to let people 21 and over buy cannabis recreationally starting Jan. 1, 2027.
Under their bill, there would be up to 350 licenses up for grabs for businesses, a 6% state cannabis tax (with localities allowed to adopt an additional local tax of 1%–3.5%) and an increase in the possession limit, from 1 ounce to 2.5 ounces.
Spanberger's substitute would make the possession limit 2 ounces, increase the state cannabis tax from 6% to 8% starting in July 2029 and limit the number of retail stores to 200 until at least Jan. 1, 2029.
Among other new penalties for marijuana-related offenses, Spanberger's revision would turn the $25 fine for public consumption into a Class 4 misdemeanor, which comes with up to a $250 civil penalty.
Also, the substitute would make it a Class 2 felony — which comes with a sentence of 20 years to life — to illegally transport at least 50 pounds of cannabis "or equivalent amount of marijuana products" into Virginia to sell or distribute.
Chelsea Higgs Wise, executive director of the Richmond-based nonprofit Marijuana Justice, says her group is encouraging legislators to turn down the governor's version and force her to make the decision.
"There's no way that we can support this proposal knowing that it will put us back into a harmful situation like we were prior to decriminalization," Wise said in a Wednesday phone interview.
Wise said no law should be put in place where marijuana alone can earn someone life in prison, telling VPM News that the substitute "is truly an unraveling of the great work and progress" done years before to try to address the racial disparity in weed arrests.
"We were optimistic because the majority of the legislators were on board with the values that we wanted in this legalization proposal, but we have been listening to the governor even prior to the election, and racial justice reform, equity was never part of her priorities," Wise said.
"Even now, when she talks about legalization, she never actually acknowledges the harms on Black and brown communities, and we are now seeing that in her proposals."
Spanberger also removed language in the bill that directs 40% of the state's cannabis tax revenues toward early childhood care and education and 30% to the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Fund, which supports people "historically and disproportionately targeted and affected by drug enforcement" and awards grants to businesses.
The governor's substitute does say "net profits shall be appropriated in the general appropriation act for purposes such as early childhood education, behavioral health, public health awareness, prevention, treatment, and recovery services, workforce development, reentry, indigent criminal defense, and targeted reinvestment in historically disadvantaged communities."
In the statement, Spanberger's spokesperson said the governor spoke with leaders in states across the county about their challenges when creating and regulating retail cannabis marketplaces.
Krizek noted all of the work that legislators and other stakeholders had done to prepare for this year, highlighting the Joint Commission to Oversee the Transition of the Commonwealth into a Cannabis Retail Market, where he serves as chair and Aird is vice chair.
The Fairfax delegate says the commission's work was "data-driven" and extensive, pointing out the input it received from advocates, the public and experts about the policies adopted in other states with legal retail cannabis markets.
Spanberger's substitute removed a provision requiring localities to be notified when a business in the area receives a license, something Krizek said he's sure fell through the cracks during the administration's rewrite but that he didn't get to review beforehand.
Krizek said legislators were open to amendments, telling VPM News that changes around intoxicating hemp that were made to the bill lawmakers approved came from Spanberger's administration.
The Virginia General Assembly will consider Spanberger's actions on legislation during its April 22 reconvened session.
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