West Virginia’s treasurer indicated he will release $38 million in medical cannabis derived funding, Mountain State Spotlight reports. The release of the funds comes after Republican Gov. Patrick Morrisey last week vetoed a bill that would have required their distribution.
In the veto letter, Morrisey said the state “must do better to plan for the future, and it can’t totally pre-commit future revenue streams like this if it’s going to have reserves to invest more in roads, water, sewer, site selection, rail, and future tax cuts.”
Treasurer Larry Pack said the funds will be disbursed according to the state’s medical cannabis law – half will be used by the Office of Medical Cannabis, with the remainder split between a grant program for substance abuse treatment and grants for law enforcement.
Pack had originally expressed concerns over the state using the funds due to cannabis’ federal designation as a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act. Lars Dalseide, a spokesman for the governor’s office, told the Spotlight that the issue wasn’t whether the funds should be used, rather “how they’re used” and whether the state was using the funds “in a responsible, sustainable way.”
