We thought we would celebrate the legalization of recreational marijuana in Mexico. We were wrong.

We thought we would celebrate the legalization of recreational marijuana in Mexico. We were wrong.

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Two months ago we Post Celebrate the passage of the Mexican House of Commons of the Cannabis Law Bill submitted to it by the Mexican Senate last November In that article, I wrote, “The law will now return to the Mexican Senate, where it is expected to be approved, and at that time it will be handed over to the executive power for publication.”

Damn.

Just over a month ago, the Senate ended its meeting and not only did not approve the law, it also ignored the Supreme Court’s instructions (beginning in 2018) to do so. As a reminder, the Supreme Court of Mexico ruled in 2018 that the federal government banned recreational marijuana use as unconstitutional and ordered Congress to pass a reform within 90 days to legalize recreational use. Since then, the court has set multiple deadlines for actions taken by Congress, and April 30, 2021 will be the final deadline.

The only obligation of Congress under the authorization of the Supreme Court is to regulate the cultivation and consumption of cannabis for personal use, but for a long time, members of Congress have publicly stated that they will try to establish a framework to provide conditions for the creation of a cannabis industry.

Unfortunately, politics interfered. In Mexico, as in many countries, cannabis is a polarizing issue. Social conservatives use this issue to intimidate voters (drug!) Understand the opposition’s intentions and assure them of their qualifications.

On the eve of last Sunday’s election, the Senate gave up its commitment on this issue, apparently more willing to transfer any political counterattacks to the Supreme Court. As early as 2018, the Supreme Court stated that it would lift the government’s ban on recreational marijuana use. If Congress did not enact reforms. A complicated issue is that the composition of the Supreme Court has changed slightly since the 2018 ruling. The issuance of a general declaration of unconstitutionality requires the support of 8 of the 11 judges.

So, what is the situation today for cannabis companies (or start-ups) interested in the Mexican market?

Of course, the final result of the election will be an important factor. The MORENA party led by President Andrés Manuel López Obrador seems to have maintained a majority of seats in the lower house of the Mexican Congress, but has lost a large number of seats. The party (PT in Spanish) and the Green Party (PVEM, in Spanish) passed legislation.

This is good news for cannabis companies; MORENA’s politicians and legislators are the initiators of the cannabis law, and they are most likely to urge further action to enact bills, for example, under the law, which is scheduled to begin on September 1, 2021. The bill was reviewed again during a session of the Senate. The victory of the opposition may delay the establishment of a legislative framework to support the development of the cannabis industry until the political wind changes again.

Another question is whether the Supreme Court will continue to advance and issue a general unconstitutional statement regarding the government’s prohibition on recreational marijuana use. If it continues, and if at least eight justices vote in favor, the existing legislation will be removed from Mexican law, which will create a legal vacuum in which there is no law applicable to non-medical use of cannabis.

If the Supreme Court meets to consider issuing a general unconstitutional statement, but most judges disagree, consumers will have to continue to apply to the Federal Health Risk Protection Commission (Spanish, Federal Health Risk Protection Committee, Or COFEPRIS) to obtain a self-cultivation/self-consumption license and will have to continue to file protection Take action without responding or refusal (a federal court action that requires the government to defend its actions).

One last factor to consider: Like the United States, Mexican state legislators have different views on marijuana issues from federal legislators. I was told that legislators in many states are drafting legislation to pave the way for the establishment of marijuana issues. The legal industrial hemp industry. Similarly, yesterday’s election results are crucial to the development of the storyline, but this is undoubtedly good news for industry stakeholders and consumers.

The above is an update on the political situation governing the development of recreational hemp and industrial hemp businesses in Mexico. I will release it again shortly and provide suggestions on how cannabis companies and investors respond to this news.



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