New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham on Wednesday asked the state House and Senate to legalize the recreational use of marijuana upon its members reconvening this month.
Ms. Lujan Grisham, a Democrat who campaigned on legalizing recreational marijuana, listed that goal among priorities included on her agenda for the upcoming legislative session.
Slated to start Tuesday, the brief, 30-day session could result in New Mexico becoming the 12th state in the country to legalize recreational marijuana if lawmakers follow the governor’s lead.
Marijuana is considered a Schedule 1 drug under the U.S. Controlled Substances Act and accordingly outlawed by the federal government. Most states have passed laws legalizing the use of marijuana for medicinal or recreational purposes, however, and several bills currently pending in Congress could outright end federal prohibition if passed.
New Mexico legalized medical marijuana in 2007, placing it among 33 states and counting where authorized patients can access and use marijuana to treat certain conditions.
Eleven of those states have separately legalized recreational, or “adult use,” marijuana, and New Mexico could easily become the next if its Democratic-controlled legislature acts before the upcoming session expires.
New Mexico state Rep. Javier Martínez, a Democrat representing Albuquerque, will lead the push to legalize recreational marijuana, the governor’s office said in a press release. He did not immediately return a message requesting comment.
Specifically, the governor’s office described the effort as such: “Legalizing the use of recreational cannabis in New Mexico and establishing a regulatory framework for its use, including public safety considerations, public health safeguards, and the protection of the state’s existing medical cannabis program.”
“Supported by 75 percent of New Mexicans in a recent poll, the legalization of recreational cannabis is projected to create 11,000 New Mexico jobs and generate hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue,” the governor’s office added.
New Mexico is bordered on the north by Colorado, which in 2012 became the first state in the country to legalize recreational marijuana and set up a system for taxing and regulating commercial sales. None of the other five states bordering New Mexico have legalized recreational marijuana yet, however.
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