Pot picture still fuzzy

Marijuana legalization has a real date. Those who had begun to suspect that the federal government was blowing smoke can now look forward to Oct. 17.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the official date last week, along with a few more details of the slowly evolving new regime.

It's safe to say consumers and retailers will be champing at the bit. Whether governments will be ready by the deadline is an open question.

Legalizing marijuana, as we have discovered over the past months, is far more complicated than writing a quick bill to take possession out of the Criminal Code. Among the biggest problems is how to deal with marijuana-impaired driving. A bill for that passed last week, but it ventures into unknown territory and will almost certainly be challenged by defence lawyers.

Unlike with alcohol, there isn’t an easy test for cannabis impairment, even though smoking up clearly interferes with one’s ability behind the wheel. Figuring out that part of the puzzle has to be completed before the new law goes into effect.

Retailers who have already opened, often in defiance of local bylaws, are getting ready to apply for provincial licences. If they are in business now, it’s likely they will be approved by the deadline. Those starting from nothing probably won’t be ready.

On the consumer side, it turns out that those who indulged and got caught when pot was still illegal will keep their criminal records. That comes as an unpleasant surprise to many who thought that all would be forgiven and forgotten.

While the date gives everyone some focus, governments at every level have a lot more work to do.