“We’ve done the research, and we can do this the right way, leading with social equity, public health, and public safety,” Northam said at the time.
Law enforcement groups, religious advocacy groups and addiction prevention advocates have been among those opposed to the measure.
Regina Whitsett, executive director of Substance Abuse Free Environment, Inc., said legalizing marijuana will increase the number of drug-impaired driving crashes and the use of marijuana among youth. The group is also concerned that edible marijuana products could get into the hands of young children and could result in accidental poisonings.
“It’s really not marijuana legalization, it’s marijuana commercialization they’re trying to pass,” Whitsett said.
Dana Schrad, executive director of the Virginia Association of Chiefs of Police, said law enforcement officials are concerned that legalization will drive up use of marijuana overall and cause more impaired driving crashes.
“The issue of looking at this as a profit industry for Virginia is negated by health care costs, by impaired driving costs, by the fact that young people are exposed to this,” Schrad said. “There are just a lot of other issues and costs that come from marijuana legalization.”
Both versions of the legislation have safety provisions that deal with packaging, advertising and consumer education.
