Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe Would Support Legalization of Medical Marijuana in 2017

By New Frontier Analysts
In a recent interview on WTOP radio, Virginia’s Democratic Governor, Terry McAuliffe, said that he would support legislation that would legalize medical marijuana in Virginia.

Though not a new position from McAuliffe, who made similar statements 2 years ago, he has continued to be outspoken about the issue.

In February of 2015, McAuliffe signed into law measures that decriminalized two medical marijuana derivatives for the treatment of epilepsy. The oils allowed under the law lack the psychoactive elements of THC, and had Democratic and Republican support. At the time, Republican Delegate Dave Albo, who was the chief sponsor of the House bill, said that federal lawmakers needed to take action to address legality on a national level, because of the challenges contradictory state and federal laws may have on access.

McAuliffe’s PAC, Common Good Virginia, recently received a donation from Surterra Holdings. Surterra, which is based in Atlanta, but is licensed to open a cannabis farm in Florida, contributed $10,000 this year. The company is the first major marijuana industry business to donate to McAuliffe’s PAC.

The donation could be a sign of things to come, since Virginia tentatively passed legislation this year which will license five cannabis farms to produce the oil that will support the aforementioned epilepsy legislation.

The question is whether or not the more conservative Virginia General Assembly will be willing to entertain legislation next year on the issue. McAuliffe is not convinced any such move in the legislature is forthcoming. However, with several marijuana legalization efforts on different state ballots, public support could grow to get the conversation started – a move that McAuliffe would welcome, especially as his term comes to an end.

McAuliffe is set to leave office in the fall of 2017.

New Frontier Analysts

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