Four more medical marijuana bills see House committee passage

FEBRUARY 15, 2024:

By Todd Epp, South Dakota Broadcasters Association.

The South Dakota House Health and Human Services Committee passed four more medical cannabis bills this week (Feb. 15, 2024).

SB43 passed 10-2. It increases the fee for a medical cannabis facility from just over $5,000 to $14,000. The owner of a small dispensary in Fort Pierre said the nearly three-fold increase could cause him to lay off employees. He said that since marijuana is illegal under federal law, he and other cannabis facilities cannot deduct their operating expenses like a “regular” business can, so margins are tight.

SB42 passed 10 to 2. It is a cleanup bill that modifies several laws concerning medical marijuana.

SB10 passed 7 to 4. It would require a dispensary issuing a medical cannabis certification to a patient, to notify the patient’s primary or referring practitioner. However, during the committee discussion, some committee members needed clarification on how the current system works or how this bill would work. They said they would rely on the expertise of the sponsors and the medical marijuana committee. There was also discussion about what to do if a patient didn’t know who their “normal” practitioner was, or if they didn’t have a practitioner.

SB11 passed 12 to 0. It prohibits a practitioner from referring a patient to a medical cannabis clinic in which the practitioner or their immediate family has a financial relationship. The committee discussed what “knowingly” sending a patient to a clinic by the provider owner means. Members concluded that if a patient ended up at a clinic owned by their provider on their own, that was not “knowingly” referring them to the dispensary.

All four bills had previously passed the Senate. They now head to the House floor for further consideration.

JANUARY 25, 2024:

By Todd Epp, South Dakota Broadcasters Association.

PIERRE, S.D. (SDBA) — The Senate Health and Human Services Committee killed two of the three medical marijuana bills on its agenda Wednesday (Jan. 24, 2024) and amended the other.

The committee killed SB82, which would have required that a patient have a relationship with a medical practitioner to obtain a medical marijuana card.

The sponsor, Republican Sen. Jim Mehlhaff from Pierre, said a healthcare provider familiar with the patient’s medical history should be the primary person to approve them for a medical marijuana card.

“The people voted that the patient should have a relationship with their doctor,” Mehlhaff said.

The lobbyist for the South Dakota Medical Association, Justin Bell, said popup clinics have been a concern. “The potential for abuse is less likely (with this bill),” Bell testified.

Opponent Charles Foley, a former Marine from Rapid City, said medical marijuana in South Dakota was “being systematically dismantled.”

Republican Sen. Tim Reed from Brookings wanted to know from Mehlhaff if there were any statistics or evidence of approving people for cards who shouldn’t qualify for one.

Mehlhaff said “no” but offered an anecdote of an 18-year-old woman who got a card. Mehlhaff said the doctor did “zero due diligence.”

The vote to send SB82 to the 41st day was 5 to 2.

The committee also killed HB1036, which would have required medical cannabis dispensaries to post a notice that being a medical marijuana cardholder can make it illegal to buy or own a firearm under federal law.

Sponsor Republican Rep. Kevin Jensen from Canton said posting a notice was a “consumer protection” issue, did not prevent anyone from getting a card, and the signage didn’t need to be fancy.

Opponents and some committee members said that not every law is posted and that the penalty provisions of the bill–$250 per day—were punitive.

Republican Sen. Michael Rohl from Aberdeen, a bar owner, said the bill was anti-business. He said the only sign he had to post in his bar was about video lottery odds.

There were also concerns about the $250 per day penalty. Jensen said he thought the Department of Health would tell the non-compliant dispensary to print the sign.

However, Jeremiah Murphy, a lobbyist for the Cannabis Industry Association of South Dakota, disagreed.

“No, the Department of Health shall enforce it,” Murphy testified. “Since the bill could mean a dispensary with a sign at the door and two at points of sale, would that be a $250-a-day fine or a $750-a-day fine?”

On a 4 to 3 vote, the committee sent HB 1036 to the 41st legislative day.

HB1024 made it through the committee, but was amended to make the notice of the federal restriction of firearm ownership a checkbox rather than a signature.

Murphy asked why concealed firearm permits don’t have a similar notice.

Jensen, the bill’s sponsor, said it’s simple. “It does nothing but inform the people.”

HB 1024 passed 7 to 0. It now goes to the Senate for further consideration. HB1024 passed the House in a slightly different form.

JANUARY 23, 2024:

JANUARY 17, 2024:

By Todd Epp, South Dakota Broadcasters Association.

PIERRE, S.D. (SDBA) — The 2024 South Dakota Legislature continues to tinker with the citizen-passed medical cannabis law.

This morning (Jan. 17, 2024), the Senate Health and Human Services Committee passed three bills that add requirements or modify the medical marijuana program.

SB10, which passed 5 to 0, requires that a patient’s primary care physician is notified when their patient receives a medical marijuana card.

SB11, which also passed 5 to 0, prevents a practitioner from referring a patient to a medical cannabis clinic that the provider or their immediate family has an interest in.

SB71, which passed 4 to 1, makes it easier for local law enforcement and other government entities to inspect, search, seize, prosecute, or impose disciplinary actions on medical marijuana dispensaries and cultivation, manufacturing, and testing facilities.

Republican Sen. Erin Tobin from Winner sponsored SB10 and SB11. She said SB10 provides a good standard of patient care. As to SB11, Tobin says it mirrors Medicare and Medicaid, where a provider cannot self-refer, calling it a conflict of interest.

With SB71, Republican Sen. Jim Mehlhaff from Pierre, the sponsor, said the medical marijuana law passed by voters in 2020 constrains local law enforcement. He said he understood why the law left inspection to the Department of Health only to help develop the new industry. However, he says the law has been on the books for several years, but now it is time to allow local law enforcement to also check on compliance.

Two industry lobbyists spoke against the bill. S.D. Cannabis Association lobbyist Jeremiah Murphy says the passage of medical marijuana was a “180-degree cultural shift” and that the law draws a bright line around medical cannabis. He said, “The voters have spoken.”

Genesis Farms lobbyist, former Attorney General Roger Tellinghuisen, said the current law adequately guards the Department of Health to do their inspections and cannabis facilities do obey the law. He said law enforcement can already investigate if they have probable cause.

The bill passed 4 to 1. The measure now heads to the Senate.