NASHVILLE, Tenn. (CLARKSVILLENOW) – The 2019 Tennessee Agricultural Medicine Act (SB 572/HB 1011) related to medical marijuana has been pushed forward to 2020, effectively killing discussion of the proposed legislation for the year.
The bill would have allowed Tennesseans to use oil-based forms of cannabis. It was once again withdrawn from this year’s legislative agenda.
The TN Medical Cannabis Trade Association (TMCTA) said the only opposition testimony to the bill was provided April 3 by law enforcement agencies: the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, the Tennessee Highway Patrol and the Tennessee Sheriffs Association.
“We want to thank the bill sponsors, state Sens. Janice Bowling (R-Tullahoma) and Steve Dickerson (R-Nashville) and Reps. Bryan Terry (R-Murfreesboro) and Ron Travis (R-Dayton), for continuing to bring this critical issue forward, and we continue to see law enforcement as a partner on this issue,” TMCTA executive director Glenn Anderson said. “Access to medical cannabis can significantly undermine illegal black market cannabis activity and free resources to pursue more serious drug crimes related to opioids and methamphetamines. Why would you make otherwise law-abiding citizens, who support their community and churches, outlaws just because they seek an effective remedy to chronic pain and debilitating disease?
“The revenues provided by medical cannabis legalization could provide urgently needed funding for many necessary programs to help rural Tennessee, such as computers in schools, teacher training, mental health & substance abuse counseling services, community revitalization programs, agricultural extension research. It’s a long list of good it could do,” Anderson added.