Virginia Lawmakers To Unveil Marijuana Sales Legalization Plan They Want To Pass In 2026 Under New Governor

*“There’s going to be a lot of new and interesting programs and good stuff
in there that will help create a well-regulated market that’s going to be
good for everybody.”*

*By Markus Schmidt, Virginia Mercury*

After four years of stalled efforts and repeated vetoes from outgoing Gov.
Glenn Youngkin (R), Virginia lawmakers now see a clear path to finally
standing up a legal adult-use cannabis market.

During her campaign, Democrat Abigail Spanberger, elected governor two
weeks ago, pledged to sign legislation establishing a regulated retail
system—reversing the impasse that kept marijuana sales in limbo since
Virginia legalized possession and home cultivation in 2021.

Lawmakers and advocates say the absence of a retail structure has fueled an
unregulated market increasingly dominated by illicit operators.

At its next meeting on December 2, the Joint Commission on the Future of
Cannabis Sales, which the legislature created earlier this year, will roll
out its finalized proposal for a retail framework it hopes the General
Assembly will pass during the 2026 session. If lawmakers send the bill to
Spanberger’s desk early next year, sales could begin as early as fall 2026.

The legislation will be carried by Del. Paul Krizek, D-Fairfax, the
commission’s chair, and Sens. Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, and Aaron Rouse,
D-Virginia Beach. Krizek told The Mercury in an interview last week that
Spanberger’s election removed the biggest roadblock lawmakers had faced to
date.

He said the outcome was “a good day for public safety and for communities
disproportionately affected by cannabis prohibition,” and a chance to
finally direct tax revenue toward priorities such as job training and
education. By contrast, he said, “It was a bad day for organized crime in
the illicit cannabis market.”

After years of pushing a bill under a governor “that was unwilling to
discuss it at all and just vetoed our bill,” he said lawmakers now have the
opportunity they have been waiting for.

“We’ve got to stand up this legal marketplace sooner rather than later,”
Krizek said.

*Final proposal pending*

At the December meeting, Krizek said, the commission will present a
proposal that incorporates months of stakeholder testimony and adjustments
intended to strengthen equity provisions and improve opportunities for
small growers.

He described the legislation as one that “addresses the historical
injustice” and adds new programs to earlier drafts, including guaranteed
shelf space at medical cannabis dispensaries for micro-enterprise farmers
once adult-use sales begin.

“There’s going to be a lot of new and interesting programs and good stuff
in there that will help create a well-regulated market that’s going to be
good for everybody,” he said.

Krizek expects meaningful but not sweeping revisions to earlier
proposals—changes “around the edges” based on feedback from stakeholders
and the public.

The extra time created by Youngkin’s opposition, he added, allowed
lawmakers to refine the legislation. “The only good thing that the current
governor has done for us is he has given us more time to perfect this
bill,” Krizek said.

But organized crime, Krizek said, “has had time to get a stranglehold on
sales,” making it essential for the state to move quickly while still
giving the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority enough time to roll out the
marketplace.

He noted that the strong election results and lessons learned from the
commission’s hearings will shape the bill, and he expects those hearings to
continue for at least the next two years.

Spanberger said in an interview with The Mercury in August that she would
sign the commission’s proposal.

“I support a legal marketplace for cannabis,” she said at the time. “I want
to ensure that it is fully regulated, people know what they’re buying, and
revenues go towards education.”

The commission’s summer hearings—its first round of work since its
creation—included presentations on public safety, market structure,
licensing and regulatory models.

*A long path to legalization*

Virginia legalized simple possession and home cultivation in 2021 under
Democratic control and then-Gov. Ralph Northam (D). But creating a retail
market required a second vote under the state’s reenactment clause.

When Republicans took the House in 2022 and Youngkin expressed opposition
to commercial marijuana sales, the process stalled. Still, lawmakers sent
multiple versions of a retail bill to Youngkin, who vetoed every proposal,
including the one he received earlier this year.

With no legal retail option, unregulated storefronts and delivery services
proliferated. Local officials have raised concerns about public safety and
product testing, and law enforcement agencies have struggled to distinguish
legal CBD products from illegal THC imports. But the refined proposal aims
to create a regulated, equitable market after years of uncertainty.

*CCA launches new medical cannabis portal*

As lawmakers prepare for a broader retail system, the CCA last week rolled
out a new online portal to streamline medical cannabis certification.

“The new CCA Portal was designed with practitioners and patients in mind,”
the agency said in a news release. The platform, which is mobile-friendly,
“offers stronger protection for personal information, safeguards against
fraud, and provides a simpler process,” while maintaining clear records of
every change.

Jamie Patten, the CCA’s acting head and chief administrative officer,
called the upgrade “a major step forward for Virginia’s medical cannabis
program. It’s safer, faster, and easier to use, and it helps us better
protect patient information while supporting the integrity of the program.”

Patients will now receive email instructions to view, save or print their
certification for dispensary visits. Practitioners can print certifications
as needed.

*Federal hemp restrictions unlikely to affect Virginia’s plans*

A continuing resolution passed by Congress last week included an
agriculture appropriations bill that effectively shut down much of the U.S.
hemp industry by reinstating stricter federal enforcement—a move that
analysts say reverses the flexibility created under the 2018 Farm Bill.

But Krizek said the federal action does not affect Virginia’s push for
adult-use marijuana sales.

“Our legislation is not a hemp bill,” he said. “This is creating a
formalized and legal adult marijuana marketplace.”

Cannabis equity advocates say Spanberger’s victory opens the door for
stronger protections against market consolidation and more robust
investments in communities disproportionately harmed by prohibition.

Chelsea Higgs Wise, co-founder of Marijuana Justice, said the final bill
should ensure fair competition by sequencing applications and limiting
canopy size for pharmaceutical processors so they cannot dominate the
market at launch.

The legislation should set a uniform Jan. 1, 2027 start date, Wise said, so
Virginia entrepreneurs can compete on equal footing, rather than allowing
medical operators an early-sales advantage.

She also urged lawmakers to clearly define what “equal and meaningful
opportunity” means in licensing and ensure patient access is protected as
the adult-use market comes online.

Wise also called for stronger equity provisions, including updated language
that explicitly acknowledges the harm of past prohibition and commits to
repairing it through impact licenses, reinvestment programs and measurable
small-business ownership goals.

Lawmakers should include micro-licenses, delivery options, nursery and
craft licenses, event permits, and direct-to-consumer sales opportunities
for small cultivators, Wise further suggested. She supports a 10,000-plant
cap to prevent consolidation by major operators and says half of the
Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Fund should go to the Equity Business Loan
Fund.

With Spanberger set to take office in January and Democrats maintaining the
legislature, lawmakers say Virginia is finally positioned to finish the
work that began in 2021.

“We’re going to make some real positive progress,” Krizek said. “This is
the opportunity we’ve been waiting for.”

*This story was first published by Virginia Mercury.*

*Photo courtesy of Chris Wallis // Side Pocket Images.*

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