Tag: Mexico

For those who know their Mexican history, the slogan of the country’s revolution between the years 1910-1920 was Tierra y Libertad (land and freedom).

This century is about to see a bit of a repeat. Including a restriction imposed by that revolution (the illegality of cannabis itself) that is about to go down in flames.

The Mexican Supreme court ruled on October 31, 2018, that current laws in the country prohibiting the recreational use of cannabis are unconstitutional. Further, the court ruled that the government must implement laws to essentially begin the process of regulating the industry by March 2019. 

Previously, the Supreme Court had ruled in 2015 that the prohibition of personal cultivation and use was also unconstitutional as it violated the human right to the free development of one’s personality. Limited medical reform was then implemented in 2017 by the government.

So far, essentially, however, this is an uncomfortable can that has been kicked down the road repeatedly by the nation’s lawmakers.

That is about to change.

The country’s legislators have a new deadline – December 15 – to pass cannabis legislation of the recreational kind.

The question still on the table is what kind of legal market this might look like – and if indeed the market will be protected or opened to foreign investors and companies.

Rec Reform “South Of The Border”?

Realistically, particularly with continued political delay north of the border (even in a Biden presidency), the development of a Mexican marijuana market that is recreationally legal is likely to start a massive influx of capital into the region – even if just to displace traditional “landed” interests that might have previous experience in the drug industry in the country – but not from the legal side of the world.

And in an irony of history, Mexico will lead drug reform north of the border, by legalizing a market and industry on a federal level that the U.S. at least, for all of its forward reform at the state level, has yet to embrace.

A revolution indeed. And further one that will undoubtedly become, beyond state reform domestically, the final nail in the coffin of prohibition in the U.S. as well.

For the latest updates on the global cannabis industry, be sure to attend the International Cannabis Business Conference when it returns to live conferences!

Mexico’s Congress is set to begin its session next month, and cannabis reform observers are eager to see what happens to cannabis legalization policy efforts that have been languishing for many months.

The Mexico Supreme Court ruled in 2018 that cannabis prohibition was unconstitutional and tasked Mexico’s lawmakers to draft, pass, and implement a cannabis regulation and legalization measure. The original deadline in which to do so was one year, however, 2019 came and went.

A new deadline was granted, and lawmakers then had until the end of April this year to comply with the Court’s ruling. Unfortunately, due to COVID that deadline came and went and a new deadline of December 15 is in place.

It is unclear what would happen if the new deadline was not complied with, yet cannabis reform supporters are hopeful that it will ultimately prove to be a moot point after Mexico’s President made comments recently that were very encouraging. Per Marijuana Moment:

The president of Mexico says that marijuana legalization will advance through Congress when it reconvenes next month—and he won’t stand in the way.

During a press conference on Wednesday, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador was asked about a recent meeting with a key senator who is championing the cannabis reform legislation and whether he’s supportive of the proposal.

He emphasized that “it must be taken into account that we are respectful of the division and balance between powers” when it comes to the executive and legislative branches of government, according to a translation, adding that the marijuana proposal has “been around for a long time.”

Mexico has a long history when it comes to the War on Drugs, and that includes cannabis. If/when legalization gets passed in Mexico it will be very interesting to see how things play out because of how complicated things are there.

It will also be interesting to see how the United States’ federal government reacts. After all, the United States will then be sandwiched in between two legal countries. Only time will tell.

In late 2018 Mexico made international headlines when the Supreme Court ruled that cannabis prohibition was unconstitutional. The Court, via its ruling, tasked lawmakers in Mexico to pass legislation that would implement a regulated cannabis legalization system.

Lawmakers were given a one-year deadline in which to comply with the Court’s decision. That deadline was not complied with and an extension was granted. Due to the ongoing pandemic, that extension was not met either, and another extension was granted. Lawmakers now have until the end of the year to comply with the Court’s directive.

Proposals are being kicked around right now, with some appearing to be gaining more traction than others. The Mayor of Azcapotzalco has offered up their suggestion for what legalization should look like in Mexico, as covered by La Silla Rota:

The mayor of Azcapotzalco, Vidal Villegas Morales sent an initiative with a draft decree to the Congress of Mexico City to allow the recreational use of marijuana.

The initiative proposes to reform and add provisions of the CDMX Law for the Comprehensive Care of Psychoactive Substance Use, in the field of cannabis.

The suggested changes are a reform to section XXXII of article 3 of said legislation on the reduction of risks and damages, among others.

Only time will tell if the proposal gains traction and ultimately becomes law in Mexico. One way or another, at some point Mexico will implement an adult-use legalization cannabis system, and it will be a very significant victory for not just Mexico, but also for the rest of the world.

Mexico has long been a major source for unregulated cannabis for the other countries, especially the United States. If/when Mexico can transition away from an unregulated system to a regulated one, it will send ripple effects around the globe.

The ongoing coronavirus pandemic is causing economic issues all across the planet right now, and Mexico’s economy is no exception. It will take some time before the true impact of the economic downturn is completely known, however, it is safe to say that things are going to be bad.

A top Senator in Mexico is touting cannabis legalization as a way to help offset the negative economic impact of the pandemic, as reported by Marijuana Moment:

A top Mexican senator says that marijuana legalization could generate tax revenue to offset economic losses caused by the coronavirus pandemic—and lawmakers could have the opportunity to advance reform in a committee that’s expected to be established on Thursday.

Sen. Julio Ramón Menchaca Salazar of the ruling Morena party said that while legislators must still resolve disagreements about legislation that’s already been introduced and advanced through several committees last month, legalizing cannabis could fill treasury coffers at a time when the economy is taking a massive hit under social distancing and stay-at-home orders.

Mexico has produced a significant amount of cannabis over the last handful of decades and has long been a source of unregulated cannabis around the world, especially in the United States.

A vast majority of that cannabis has financially benefitted gangs and cartels, and none of it has generated revenue for the public coffers in Mexico. Mexico is well-positioned to be an international cannabis industry powerhouse, but first Mexico needs to pass an adult-use legalization bill.

In late 2018 Mexico’s Supreme Court issued a ruling that deemed cannabis prohibition to be unconstitutional and tasked Mexico’s lawmakers with passing a legalization measure. That has yet to happen, with lawmakers failing to meet the first two deadlines set out by Mexico’s Supreme Court.

In 2018 Mexico’s Supreme Court determined that cannabis prohibition was unconstitutional. Since that time Mexico’s cannabis policy has remained in limbo while Mexico’s lawmakers work to pass legislation to implement cannabis legalization.

Initially, Mexico’s Supreme Court issued a one-year deadline for lawmakers to pass the legislation, and lawmakers failed to meet the initial deadline. The Court then issued an extension to the end of April 2020 for lawmakers to meet.

Due to various factors, not the least of which is the coronavirus pandemic, lawmakers are not able to meet the deadline extension. Thankfully, Mexico’s Supreme Court issued another extension, as reported by Marijuana Moment:

The new deadline for lawmakers to end prohibition is December 15—the end of the next legislative session. Politco.mx first reported the development.

Sen. Mónica Fernández, president of the Senate’s Board of Directors, thanked the court for approving the extension.

Although lawmakers conceded they would not be able to meet this month’s deadline, substantial progress has been made nonetheless on the cannabis legislation.

When the initial court ruling was issued, Mexico appeared to be on the fast-track to becoming the third country to implement an adult-use cannabis legalization policy. Uruguay and Canada are the only two countries to have implemented an adult-use cannabis legalization measure.

Many reports have come out of Mexico since late 2018 stating that ‘progress has been made’ on legislation, just for those reports to ultimately prove fruitless. Until legislation is a done deal, Mexico’s cannabis policy will remain in limbo and all reports of increased momentum towards success will need to be met with tempered expectations.

As of this blog post, there are only two countries that have legalized cannabis for adult use – Canada and Uruguay. Uruguay was the first country to legalize cannabis for adult use, and Canada was the first G-7 country to do so.

A court ruling last year in Italy struck down cannabis prohibition, however, lawmakers in Italy have yet to pass legislation to implement a cannabis legalization law. Prior to the court ruling in Italy, a similar court ruling occurred in Mexico, with Mexico’s Supreme Court not only ruling that cannabis prohibition was unconstitutional, but the Court also tasked lawmakers with passing legalization legislation by the end of 2019.

The initial deadline came and went, and Mexico’s Supreme Court issued an extension, with a new deadline being April 30th. That is obviously a month away still, yet with everything going on in regards to the coronavirus pandemic, it’s looking increasingly unlikely that Mexico’s lawmakers will be able to meet the new deadline.

Senate commissions in Mexico passed a legalization bill earlier in March, but there’s still a lot that needs to be done before the bill gets all the way through the political process in Mexico. The legislation still needs to go through the Mexico Senate plenary and the Chamber of Deputies before it goes to Mexico’s President for his signature.

Anything is possible, obviously, but the odds of Mexico’s lawmakers getting all of that done within a month are not good. That would be true even if there wasn’t a pandemic going on. With the pandemic still affecting operations all over the globe, including in Mexico, the legalization in effort could get frozen in Mexico for the time being.

Mexico’s lower chamber suspended most functions on March 20th, with no firm date set to resume all operations. With that being said, presumably, Mexico’s Supreme Court will issue another extension, which will allow Mexico’s lawmakers more time to build consensus around a comprehensive cannabis legalization measure.

What the new date would be is anyone’s guess at this point.

Mexico has a long history with cannabis, and Mexico has served as a global source for illegal cannabis for many years. In late 2018 Mexico’s Supreme Court issued a landmark ruling in which the Court declared cannabis prohibition to be unconstitutional.

At the time of the decision, Mexico’s Supreme Court issued a deadline to lawmakers in Mexico mandating that they pass an adult-use cannabis legalization measure. The one-year deadline has come and gone, with an extension being granted. A legalization measure was circulated over the weekend, and this week the bill is expected to be debated by lawmakers, as reported by Marijuana Moment:

The 228-page document lists a series of proposed regulations for a legal cannabis model.

It would allow adults 18 and older to possess and cultivate marijuana for personal use. Individuals could grow up to 20 registered plants as long as the total yield doesn’t exceed 480 grams per year. Medical patients could apply to cultivate more than 20 plants, however.

Personal possession would be capped at 28 grams, but possession of up to 200 grams would be decriminalized.

Activists in Mexico have expressed concern about the lack of changes in the current legalization measure compared to previous versions that failed to be passed. It’s unclear at this time what the odds are of the current bill passing.

Even when lawmakers express optimism of it passing, those types of statements should be met with tempered expectations because a lot of political optimism has been offered up since late 2018, yet the passage of a legalization measure has remained elusive.

Currently, cannabis is officially legal for adult use in Canada and Uruguay.

In 2018 Mexico’s Supreme Court ruled that cannabis prohibition was unconstitutional, and tasked lawmakers in Mexico with passing legislation to implement cannabis legalization.

The court decision effectively made Mexico the third country to legalize cannabis for adult-use, with the first two being Uruguay and Canada. Both of those countries passed legislation to legalize cannabis for adult use.

The court decision in Mexico put a deadline in place that lawmakers were bound by – one year from the court ruling. That deadline came and went, yet no legislation was passed by Mexico’s lawmakers.

An extension was granted by the Supreme Court of Mexico, and lawmakers now have until April 30th to make it happen. It is unclear what would happen if the new deadline is missed. Recently Mexico’s President announced that a panel will conduct research and offer up recommendations to lawmakers. Per Marijuana Moment:

The president of Mexico said on Monday that a government panel is being formed in order to make recommendations for a legal marijuana system in the country.

While he didn’t offer many details about the commission, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said it will be focused on studying public health aspects of legalization.

Only time will tell if some, or any, of the provisions recommended by the government panel will make it into any successful legislation. For that matter, only time will tell if lawmakers succeed in passing legalization legislation prior to the deadline.

For a brief time last year, it appeared that the push for a legalization measure would be successful, however, the effort stalled after special interests made a big push to kill the measure that seemed to have the most potential. April 30th is not far away. Hopefully lawmakers can get the job done this time, and pass sensible legislation.

Last year the Supreme Court of Mexico ruled that cannabis prohibition is unconstitutional.

In effect, it somewhat made Mexico the third country to legalize cannabis for adult use. The first country to do so was Uruguay, followed by Canada.

Unlike Uruguay and Canada, Mexico has yet to pass legislation that codifies adult-use cannabis legalization into law.

After its ruling in favor of legalization last year, Mexico’s Supreme Court issued a deadline for lawmakers to pass a comprehensive legalization measure.

Unfortunately, Mexican lawmakers were unable to meet the deadline. Fortunately, they were granted an extension, as reported by Marijuana Moment:

“Just days before the one-year anniversary of a Mexican Supreme Court ruling that deemed the country’s prohibition of personal use or cultivation of marijuana unconstitutional, the judicial body granted an extension of a deadline it imposed on lawmakers to change the policy.

The legislature now has until April 30, 2020 to pass reform legislation, whereas the previous mandate required action by Thursday.”

Mexico will be a massive domino in the effort to end cannabis prohibition worldwide. It is not so much due to Mexico’s population size as much as it’s due to Mexico’s history.

It is no secret that cartels have had a major presence in Mexico for many years. Legalization would shift some cannabis revenues away from cartels and towards legal entrepreneurs and public programs.

The unregulated cannabis market will always exist in Mexico, just as it will likely exist everywhere else to some extent. 

However, every dollar that can be shifted away from cartels to a regulated market that benefits Mexico’s citizenry is a big deal and why legalization is so important in Mexico.

A recent estimate by a ruling party Senator in Mexico projected that legal cannabis would generate up to 18 billion pesos ($945 million USD) for public programs in its first year.