2022.08.15 CC Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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TO: DATE: Hugo City Council and Bryan Bear, City Administrator August 10, 2022 FROM: David Snyder, City Attorney AGENDA ITEM: Consider Regulation of THC Edibles INTRODUCTION: The Minnesota Legislature recently enacted a new law allowing the sale of certain edible and beverage products containing tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Some cities have enacted a temporary moratorium banning the sale of these products while the city studies whether or how to regulate these products. ISSUE BEFORE THE CITY COUNCIL: The City may wish to consider an ordinance designed to regulate the sale of edible THC Products through zoning and/or licensing. SUMMARY: The new law expands the authority to include nonintoxicating cannabinoids, including edible cannabinoid products, provided they do not contain more than 0.3% of any THC. An edible cannabinoid product also cannot exceed more than five milligrams of any THC in a single serving, or more than a total of 50 milligrams of THC per package. The new law does not restrict where these products can be sold, but it has been suggested that state liquor licensing laws would prohibit sale of these products at a liquor store. The new law was passed without much, if any, regulatory guidance to accompany it. Beginning on July 1, 2022, it became legal to sell certain products containing delta-9 THC (“THC Products”) in Minnesota. The Act allows THC Products to be sold if certain requirements are met including that there are not more than 5mg of THC per dose of 50 mg of THC per container; the purchaser is at least 21 years old; and the products are not marketed toward children. The Minnesota Board of Pharmacy (“Board”) is the state agency with oversight of THC Products. There is currently no state-level license required in order to sell THC Products. The Act does not expressly require a city to allow the sale of THC Products, nor does it restrict a city’s ability to regulate such facilities through additional zoning or licensing requirements. Any local regulations must not create an irreconcilable conflict with state law, but instead must be merely additional and complementary or in aid of furtherance of the Act. Also, local regulations must not exceed a city’s lawful licensing or zoning powers. It is generally accepted that a city may address this through licensing and zoning regulations.