Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. (D) signed the legislation, sponsored by Sen. Janelle Sarauw (I), just before a 10-day deadline for action. He also took the opportunity to issue a proclamation allowing people to petition for pardons for prior cannabis possession convictions.

“From the beginning of the Bryan-Roach Administration, we have worked towards the legalization of the adult use of cannabis, and today, with the hard work of the members of the 34th Legislature and prior Legislatures and the efforts of my team, we are finally here and finally signing into law the Virgin Islands Cannabis Use Act,” the governor, who released his own legalization proposal in 2019, said.

Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. (D) signed the legislation, sponsored by Sen. Janelle Sarauw (I), just before a 10-day deadline for action. He also took the opportunity to issue a proclamation allowing people to petition for pardons for prior cannabis possession convictions.

Here are the highlights of the bills:

Adults over the age of 21 can possess up to two ounces of marijuana, fourteen grams of cannabis concentres and one ounce of cannabis products such as edibles, ointments and tinctures.

The legislation will create an Office of Cannabis Regulation (OCR), tasked with issuing marijuana business licenses, overseeing the industry and setting rules on issues like advertising, packaging and labeling.

There will be several license and permit types, including for cannabis manufacturers, retailers, cultivators, micro-cultivators, testing laboratories and on-site consumption entities.

There will be caps on how many licenses OCR could grant for each of the territory’s main islands. Regulators can issue more after January 1, 2025 if they conduct a study demonstrating that the expansion is needed to meet consumer demand.

Individuals who use marijuana for sacramental purposes can apply for their own cultivation permits.

There will be a tax of no less than 18 percent on marijuana purchased from dispensaries, but that will not apply to medical cannabis. The bill also lays out licensing fees and calls for a 50 cent per gram tax on cannabis cultivators who sell marijuana to other licensees.

Lawmakers “did … due diligence in protecting the masses and the best interests of our residents by ensuring that locals and minorities are not locked out of the industry and have an opportunity to participate in its economic potential,” Sarauw stated, adding that the bill will create an industry “that is inclusive and diverse, but most importantly, safe.”

Roughly 106,000 people live in the U.S. Virgin Islands, where medical cannabis is legal and possession of up to 1 ounce is decriminalized.