The South Carolina House Medical, Military, Public and Municipal Affairs Committee (3M) held discussion on Monday April 4 on S0150. This bill looks to establish a legal medical cannabis program for qualifying patients in South Carolina. The bill’s sponsor, Senator Tom Davis, R, has stated multiple times S0150 would become the most conservative medical cannabis bill in the U.S. should it pass.
S0150 passed the Senate at the end of February and stalled various times within the House. After finally moving to the House 3M committee, a subpanel took up discussion before the House committee itself. On April 7, the 3M committee voted 15-3 in favor of S0150. This vote moves the bill to a full chamber debate, where discussion may take an extended period of time.
Potential Amendments
Before discussion even started in the House 3M committee, S0150 received more than 100 potential amendments . Most were from Representative Vic Dabney, R, who has previously opposed medical and recreational cannabis legalization. It appeared to be a delay tactic that threatened to extend discussion of S0150 for days. However, the bulk of the amendments became thrown out for being dilatory, or unfriendly and stalling to the overall bill. Representative Dabney then removed the rest of his proposed amendments and discussion proceeded as usual.
During lengthy discussion of other proposed amendments, one amendment received approval. It would be an update to the packaging and label requirements for medical cannabis. Products must be labeled as indica, sativa, or hybrid to give patients a better understanding of the product they wish to purchase from medical cannabis dispensaries. Beyond this amendment, the 3M committee didn’t add anything else to S0150 before sending it to the full House chamber for discussion and a vote.
Responses to S0150
Lawmakers have expressed mixed reviews surrounding medical cannabis legalization, and many look to the pioneering states and their general responses. “My concern is, across the nation, wherever these bills have passed, a lot of problems develop,” Representative Dabney explained. A friend in Washington State, he continued, told him that it “ruined” the state, with “people laying around on the streets…just stoned all the time.”
Other lawmakers, such as Representative Sandy McGarry, insist on more research before moving forward with legalization. Or Representative Ryan McCabe, R, who criticized the limit on licenses, saying there should be no limit for a truly free market. However, he still opposes legalization in general, saying, “Americans want a chemical to solve every single problem. My concern with this bill is that encourages people to use marijuana to deal with their problems.”
There are those in support of S0150 in the South Carolina House, however. Representative Wendall Gillard, D, is one such individual. “37 states cannot be wrong,” he explained, referring to the majority of U.S. states that have already legalized medical marijuana.“If it’s going to help children, I say do it. If it’s going to help curing pains of some of your fellow veterans…I say do it,” the representative said. “Not everything that is challenged can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is challenged.”
Future of S0150
Regardless of what certain lawmakers think, a full chamber vote will come soon enough. There, they will discuss and vote on S0150, taking into consideration lives, health, and the federal legalization status to determine if South Carolina will become the next state to legalize medical cannabis for qualifying patients. As more information becomes available, we will update you with the latest.
Make sure to check back for more cannabis, hemp, and psychedelic related news.