Sask. outlines fines As legal pot looms large

In another step toward pot legalization, the Saskatchewan government released amendments Wednesday to its Cannabis Control Act, with tickets for breaking the rules ranging from $200 to $2,250.

And while the province says the rules will be similar to those surrounding alcohol, there is no such thing as “open marijuana” in the same way there is “open alcohol.”

So, to clarify — here are some of the need-to-knows about consuming cannabis when it is legal to do so (expected in October).

WHERE YOU CAN USE,

HOW MUCH YOU CAN HAVE

You can’t possess or distribute more than 30 grams of dried cannabis in a public place. If you do, the ticket is $200.

If you’re caught possessing, consuming or distributing cannabis in a vehicle, the ticket is $300. But that does not apply if someone is taking cannabis from a “legal point of purchase” to a “legal point of consumption.” How exactly this will be enforced remains unknown.

If a “cannabis prohibition” is in effect, it will cost you $200 if caught consuming at a campground.

CONSUMPTION IN PUBLIC

Don’t smoke or consume marijuana in a public place — or you’ll risk a $200 ticket.

If you use at a school, on school grounds or at a child care facility the fine rises to $1,000.

BEING A MINOR

If you “pull” for a minor, you can be fined $750 — as that is the charge for selling or giving cannabis to someone under the age of 19. If you’re a minor and caught purchasing, consuming or selling cannabis, you risk a $300 ticket.

Employees working at retail cannabis locations — pot shops — who are caught not demanding proof of age, or selling to a minor, can be fined $2,250.