Attorney General Mark Herring praises Virginia House and Senate’s passage of marijuana decriminalization legislation

RICHMOND (February 11, 2020) – Attorney General Mark R. Herring today issued the following statement praising the Virginia House and Senate’s passage of legislation that will decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana:

“Passing decriminalization in both the House and the Senate is a really important first step in the right direction on Virginia’s journey towards legal and regulated adult use, but this cannot be the end. We must keep going because the work is not done,” said Attorney General Herring. “For too long, Virginia’s approach to cannabis has needlessly saddled Virginians, especially African Americans and people of color, with criminal records but with these votes that is finally coming to an end. I want to thank my colleagues in both the House and the Senate for joining me in making this issue a priority and I look forward to seeing the progress we can make in the coming years.”

Attorney General Herring has become the leader on cannabis reform in Virginia following his call for decriminalization of small amounts of marijuana, action to address past convictions, and a move towards legal and regulated adult use. In his call for cannabis reform, he cited the unnecessary negative impact of a criminal conviction for possession, the expense and social costs of enforcing the current system, and the disparate impact on African Americans and people and communities of color.

Attorney General Herring reiterated his call for reform when data from 2018 showed a record number of arrests for marijuana possession. In the last decade the number of first time marijuana convictions in Virginia has risen 53%, from 6,533 in 2008 to 10,000 in 2017. Arrests for marijuana possession have increased about 220%, from around 9,000 in 1999 to nearly 29,000 in 2018.

The cost of marijuana criminal enforcement is estimated to exceed $81 million each year. In December 2019, Attorney General Herring held a cannabis summit for policy making stakeholders in Virginia that focused on policy and included experts from attorneys generals’ offices, state agencies and legislative operations in states that have legalized cannabis, as well as cannabis policy experts.