Lawmakers in Maine voted on Monday to overturn Gov. Paul LePage’s veto of a bill expanding the state’s medical marijuana program. The state House of Representatives voted 119-23 to override the governor’s veto of the bill, known as L.D. 1539. The vote in the Maine Senate was 25-8. Both houses voted on the question “Shall this Bill become a law notwithstanding the objections of the Governor?”
When it becomes law within 90 days of the end of the current legislative session, L.D. 1539 will greatly expand access to medical marijuana. The bill eliminates the specific list of medical conditions that qualify a patient for the use of medicinal cannabis. Instead, physicians will be able to recommend medical marijuana for any patient they believe will benefit.
The new law will also allow the issuance of permits for six more medical cannabis dispensaries and adds manufacturing and processing facilities to the program. It also authorizes the expansion of caregivers’ businesses while subjecting them to tighter state and local control.
Lawmakers and Cannabis Industry Celebrate Override
Republican Rep. Deborah Sanderson, the bill’s sponsor, told High Times that overriding the veto was the right thing to do. She noted that the legislature had made a deliberate and thorough review of existing law.
“I’m very pleased that it was overridden,” Sanderson said. “The Health and Human Services Committee took a very comprehensive look at Maine’s medical marijuana laws. We started right at the very beginning and went through the entire law. We took a look at what had been happening over the last eight years with it—where it needed to be tightened up, where it needed to be improved and tweaked for better patient access.”
Sanderson explained that L.D. 1539 lifts some restrictions on caregivers, making it easier for sick