Maryland lawmakers are meeting this week to start their 90-day legislative session to discuss topics concerning the $4.5 billion budget surplus, COVID-19, climate change, and legalizing recreational marijuana. The Democratic-controlled Maryland General Assembly will plan how to manage the surplus for the current and upcoming fiscal years, and state Senate President Bill Ferguson said they need to be careful how they approach the budget. “I think people have heard this $4.6 billion like it’s time that we can fund everything possible, but we’ve got to be very, very thoughtful and moderate about how we approach it because we don’t want to set ourselves up for a fiscal cliff in two to three years from now,” Ferguson said. Legalizing recreational marijuana is one of the topics the lawmakers will consider, one with fiscal implications. Ferguson previously pledged that Maryland legislation would work to legalize the use of recreational marijuana, the Baltimore Sun reported. Democratic House Speaker Adrienne Jones voiced her support for adding legalized cannabis to the November ballot, according to WBAL-TV. However, Jones previously said she has concerns when it comes to young adults.
420 Intel – Marijuana Industry News, 01/10/2022 19:00:00