Finally, after an excruciating months-long legislative process, Minnesota has become the 23rd state to legalize adult-use cannabis!
On Tuesday, May 30, Governor Tim Walz (D) signed into law HF-100, a bill to create a framework for legal cannabis in Minnesota.
Minnesota just became the 23rd state in the nation to legalize adult-use cannabis.
— Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) May 30, 2023
How did the bill become law?
Advocates have faced an arduous journey getting this bill over the finish line. The Minnesota House and Senate crafted differing bills, which each had to make their way through over a dozen committees. (They also navigated confusion sown by Republican lawmakers who disguised themselves as members of a pro-weed third party in order to shift power in the statehouse.)
Then, after each bill passed its respective body, lawmakers had to reconcile them. HF-100 marks the results of their labor. It allows for:
- generous possession limits (2 ounces in public/2 pounds at home)
- home cultivation (4 mature plants)
- gives “gifting” a green light
- and allows medical providers to sell to adults age 21 and over by 2025
Governor Tim Walz signed HF-100 May 30. Read on to learn more about what’s in the bill.
Is weed legal in Minnesota?
Not quite yet. Cannabis becomes legal for adults to possess and purchase in a few months, on August 1. It’s been medically legal since 2014. It will take until 2025 to get adult-use dispensaries to get open. The exception is federal reservation land.
Tribal Nations will be allowed to start selling August 1st. The Red Lake Nation will allow recreational marijuana dispensaries and begin operating on tribal land on Aug. 1.
How much weed is legal in Minnesota?
Adults can possess and purchase up to two ounces of cannabis in public. They can possess up to two pounds of cannabis at home. So that’s two sandwich baggies to walk around with, and two year’s supply at the house. Pretty, pretty good.
When will adult-use cannabis become available for purchase in Minnesota?
Current medical providers could begin selling to adults on March 1, 2025. The Red Lake Nation will allow recreational marijuana dispensaries and begin operating on tribal land on Aug. 1.
What forms of cannabis can Minnesota adults purchase?
HF-100 does not include limitations on the permissible forms of cannabis in Minnesota: customers will likely have the ability to buy flower, edibles, tinctures, concentrates, and topicals.
Will the bill permit cannabis delivery services?
Yes! The legislation allows for cannabis delivery.
Will Minnesota tax cannabis sales?
Yes, Minnesota will levy a 10% gross receipt tax on cannabis sales; plus the existing 6.875% statewide sales.
Can you grow weed legally at home in Minnesota?
Yes. Adults can grow up to eight plants at home, but only four of them can be mature. Pick out some seeds here.
Will Minnesota expunge prior cannabis convictions?
Yes. Automatic expungement for past offenses will begin this August.
Does the bill include equity provisions?
Yes. Minnesota’s new Division of Social Equity housed in the Office of Cannabis will support priority licenses to people with past marijuana-related offenses, as well as residents of low-income areas and military veterans with past marijuana offenses. The program will include grants.
Can Minnesota cities and counties opt out of sales?
No, but they can regulate businesses’ operating hours and limit where businesses can operate via zoning codes. Read more about how towns that ban legal stores hand their tax revenue over to street dealers that don’t check IDs.
Can you throw a legal weed party in Minnesota?
Yes, the law allows events from a licensed ‘cannabis event organizer.’
Let’s go, Minnesota, where advocates and proponents in state government never gave up the fight to get legalization over the finish line.
We can’t wait for sales to start. Rest assured, when they do, we’ll be on the scene to give you the inside scoop on the best weed in the Land of 10,000 Lakes.
