Virginia Gov. Spanberger Amends Cannabis Bills, Responds to Trump Criticism

Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger is proposing changes to a legislative push that seeks to legalize recreational marijuana sales in the state.

On Monday, Spanberger submitted amendments to bills sent to her desk by the state legislators in March. Spanberger aims to delay retail marijuana sales launch by six months, until July 1, 2027.

The push signals a regulation-first approach that prioritizes market structure over speed, as it seeks “additional time to implement a legal market safely and curb the illicit market.”

House Bill 642 and Senate Bill 542 will legalize and regulate the retail sale of cannabis to adults 21 and older. Under the policy change, a framework to establish a retail marijuana market will be established and administered by the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority.

“We are working to set up a marketplace that is controlled, regulated, and responsible — because legal markets only succeed when there are clear guardrails and enforcement to back it up,” Spanberger said in a statement.

Virginia became the first state in the South, and the 17th in the nation, to legalize recreational marijuana use cannabis in 2021. Key provisions needed re-enactment but weren’t, leaving sales illegal and unregulated.

Virginians 21 and older are allowed to possess up to 1 ounce of cannabis. In the new legislative push, lawmakers proposed raising it to 2.5 ounces. However, with amendments, Spanberger seeks to set a 2-ounce limit instead.

Spanberger also amended House Bill 26 and Senate Bill 62, which seek to allow sentence reconsideration for past marijuana-related convictions, to explicitly exclude any violent or serious drug offenses from reconsideration.

Separate bills, House Bill 308 and Senate Bill 620, which introduce stricter oversight of vape retailers, including mandatory undercover compliance checks every two years, were also amended to allow stronger enforcement powers to shut down shops repeatedly selling to minors.

Trump Criticizes Virginia Policies As Spanberger Pushes Back

As Gov. Spanberger moves forward with a regulation-first plan to legalize marijuana sales, she is also facing growing national scrutiny. Over the weekend, President Donald Trump criticized her policies, claiming that those she advances are raising taxes, referring to bills introduced by Virginia Democrats that stalled, as reported by WTKR.

Spanberger rejected the claims as false, arguing her administration is focused on lowering healthcare, housing, and energy costs through bipartisan legislation. She accused Trump of spreading false claims about tax hikes to distract from her cost-cutting legislation in Virginia, reported 13NewsNow.

On the tax side, the proposal includes a 6% excise tax, a 5.3% retail sales tax, and up to a 3.5% local tax. While the sales bill moves forward, Spanberger also signed related measures protecting parental rights for cannabis consumers, allowing medical marijuana access in hospitals, and proposing updates to resentencing relief and delivery rules.

Want to Ease Industry Pressure? Look at 280E

Cannabis operators continue to face some of the highest effective tax rates in any industry due to 280E, putting sustained pressure on margins and growth. How much is this costing the sector, and what changes could shift the outlook? Read the full breakdown here.

Who Will Benefit From Policy Change

Virginia’s medical cannabis market is run by a small group of multi-state operators, within a tightly controlled system of just 24 stores statewide, generating approximately $45.3 million in 4Q25 sales, up 16% year over year. With limited retail density, the state delivers strong economics at roughly $7.5 million in annual revenue per store and average prices near $9.74 per gram, among the highest in the U.S.

Virginia’s medical cannabis market features Jushi Holdings Inc. (CSE: JUSH) (OTCQX: JUSHF), which operates the Beyond/Hello dispensary brand, while Green Thumb Industries Inc. (CSE: GTII) (OTCQX: GTBIF) runs RISE locations in parts of the state. Verano Holdings Corp. (Cboe CA: VRNO) (OTCQX: VRNO) has acquired certain Virginia dispensary assets in select regions, reflecting the state’s tightly controlled, limited-operator structure.