Countering county and municipal government officials who’ve tried to limit the number of cannabis shops in their jurisdictions, the state Senate on Thursday voted to rein in local restrictions.
Senate Republicans and county officials have contended that the policy usurps local control, and some state and local Democrats representing Prince George’s County have said they’re concerned about a proliferation of dispensaries in jurisdictions with a high concentration of liquor stores and smoke shops.
But supporters in the state Senate and House of Delegates have said that limiting local control will keep the black market at bay and benefit the minority-owned businesses entering a months-old industry that two in three Maryland voters supported in a referendum.
“There is a great deal of concern that if we make the zoning burdensome, and dispensaries cannot come into counties, that the illicit trade will continue,” Senate Finance Committee Chair Pamela Beidle said during a Thursday floor session.
Click here to read the rest of the article written by Jack Hogan over at The Daily Record
