Bill To Legalize Marijuana Sales In Virginia In 2026 Will Be Unveiled This Week

*“We need to regulate, control and tax marijuana, so that we have a revenue
that can help the community reinvest.”*

*By Markus Schmidt, Virginia Mercury*

After months of hearings and study, the legislature’s Joint Commission on
the Future of Cannabis Sales is poised to roll out a final proposal Tuesday
that would launch a legal, regulated adult-use cannabis retail market in
Virginia—potentially ending five years of economic and legal uncertainty
since the commonwealth legalized possession and cultivation in 2021.

The latest version—sponsored by Commission Chair Paul Krizek, D-Fairfax, in
the House of Delegates and Sens. Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, and Aaron
Rouse, D-Virginia Beach, in the Senate—scraps the controversial
local-opt-out clause, increases local taxing authority and builds a
licensing regime designed to privilege small, independent, Virginia-based
businesses over large medical-marijuana operators.

Krizek said the refinements are not about maximizing short-term revenue,
but creating a sustainable, decentralized market that channels tax dollars
back into communities disproportionately harmed by the War on Drugs—even if
that means giving up some early windfalls.

“The goal has been to make sure it is a decentralized market structure,
competitive, sustainable, prioritizing independent Virginia-based
businesses,” Krizek told The Mercury in an interview last week.

*Retail plan moves forward after years of vetoes*

Virginia became the first Southern state to legalize adult-use cannabis in
2021, allowing adults 21 and older to possess up to 1 ounce and cultivate
up to four plants at home. But the law included no mechanism for legal
sales, and successive retail-market bills were blocked by vetoes from
outgoing Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R).

The commission created earlier this year aims to deliver what lawmakers
couldn’t: a comprehensive retail structure. Its final proposal is set to be
formally introduced ahead of the 2026 session, with sales targeted to begin
November 1, 2026—provided lawmakers clear the bill and Gov.-elect Abigail
Spanberger (D) signs it.

Supporters say the absence of a legal retail framework has only bolstered
the illicit market. “It was a bad day for organized crime in the illicit
cannabis market,” Krizek said earlier this month, referring to the election
of Spanberger, who has pledged to sign adult-use legislation.

Spanberger, a Democrat, told The Mercury in August that she supports “a
legalized retail market for cannabis.”

*What’s new: Opt-outs gone; local control expanded*

The biggest change to the retail framework: a provision that would have
allowed localities to opt out of cannabis sales altogether has been
eliminated.

Under earlier drafts, counties and cities could have banned retail outlets
via referendum—a feature critics likened to “dry counties,” which risked
stranding large populations without access to legal cannabis.

“We’re not going to have an opt-out for a lot of reasons,” Krizek said.

He argued that opt-outs would invite unregulated illicit markets to
flourish in “dry” zones, threaten public safety and undermine statewide
equity and revenue goals. He added that local governments would retain full
control over zoning, buffer zones and licensing requirements under the new
plan.

The final bill also increases local taxing authority. Under previous
proposals, localities could levy up to 2.5 percent in local excise tax. The
new draft raises that cap to 3.5 percent, giving local governments more
resources for schools, public-health campaigns and other priorities.

The state tax remains at a proposed 8 percent—with a new provision to allow
deductibility of certain business costs at the state level, even though
marijuana remains federally illegal.

The bill would also remove the sales tax on paraphernalia and treat those
items under ordinary sales tax rules.

“With the local tax bump, communities will have a little bit more resources
to do the things they need to do at the local level,” Krizek said.

Perhaps most consequential is a licensing regime aimed at decentralizing
ownership and expanding opportunity for “micro-business” operators.

As many as 50 percent of initial licenses would be reserved for
micro-businesses—small operators who grow, process or sell cannabis on a
modest scale. Large medical-marijuana operators will still be eligible, but
all license holders will be capped at five total retail and/or
grow/processing authorizations.

Krizek said even a silent partner with a small stake—say 1 percent—would
count toward that limit, making corporate consolidation difficult.

A new direct-to-consumer license also would allow micro-businesses to
deliver cannabis directly to patient or adult-use customers’ homes—subject
to regulation by the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority (CCA).

Krizek said the overall goal is to build “hundreds of new, small local
businesses,” strengthen Virginia’s agricultural sector and direct tax
dollars to the communities harmed most by prohibition.

“We all recognize that we need to regulate, control and tax marijuana, so
that we have a revenue that can help the community reinvest…and the
racially disparate impacts of the prohibition or the War on Drugs.”

He emphasized the aim is a “well regulated adult market” that remains
competitive and sustainable, even if the state takes in less tax revenue
early on, rather than let a handful of large companies corner the industry.

*Commission draws on recent data and industry hearings*

The final proposal, which will be posted to Virginia’s legislative
information system in the coming days, reflects insights gathered at a
series of public hearings held by the commission this year.

In August, lawmakers heard from experts on taxation, equity and
small-business opportunity—clear signals that the commission was preparing
to write a framework that diverged from past drafts.

Players in the medical-cannabis system—which underlies the retail
rollout—recently logged major milestones. The CCA’s seed-to-sale tracking
system, operated through the vendor Metrc, is now live. Between July and
August, the medical market recorded nearly $30 million in sales across more
than 256,000 transactions.

Proponents say that tracking, combined with planned labeling rules, testing
standards and delivery-license oversight, marks one of the strongest
regulatory regimes in the country—and a much firmer barrier between the
legal and illicit markets than existed under previous, vetoed plans.

Critics at past hearings pointed out that older drafts still lacked crucial
definitions for delivery agents and clarity on labeling, especially for
edibles and topicals.

*Labor advocates welcome promise of “people-based market”*

UFCW 400—a union representing 35,000 workers across retail, cannabis,
grocery, health care, food-processing and service jobs in the
mid-Atlantic—praised the new plan’s emphasis on small businesses and
equitable labor practices.

“We at UFCW 400 are excited to finally see a pathway for an adult use
marketplace here in Virginia. We are pushing for a people-based market, one
that centers workers, consumers, and community,” Kayla Mock, the union’s
vice president, said in an email.

The union hopes the legislation will include labor-peace provisions to
ensure any worker organizing efforts are free from retaliation. Mock added
that monopolies in the cannabis sector are bad for workers, consumers and
long-term fairness, and supported the micro-license approach as a check
against corporate dominance.

Union leaders say that, in states lacking labor protections, cannabis
workers have faced “retaliation, intimidation and termination” when they
attempted to unionize—conditions they hope Virginia’s new law will avoid.

*What’s next—and what could derail the rollout*

The commission is scheduled to formally present the finalized proposal at
Tuesday’s meeting, clearing the way for lawmakers to introduce the bill in
the 2026 session. If all goes well—and there are no new roadblocks—retail
sales could potentially begin November 1, 2026.

But the outcome is not yet certain. Opponents may raise familiar concerns
about public health, youth access and law enforcement challenges. Some have
noted that the transition from decriminalization to a fully regulated
retail market carries risks—especially if regulators do not balance access,
safety and equity correctly.

Still, advocates say the revamped legislation could deliver on
long-promised reforms. “We’ve got to stand up this legal marketplace sooner
rather than later,” Krizek said.

If the bill passes next year, Virginia could finally close the book on five
years of legal limbo—and become a test case for a Southern state embracing
adult-use cannabis with an eye toward equity, community reinvestment and
small-business growth.

*This story was first published by Virginia Mercury.*

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Unveiled This Week appeared first on Marijuana Moment.