Legal pot-sale bill heads to the House

A bill that would begin the process of allowing the sale of legal marijuana in Connecticut passed a key legislative committee on Thursday — and now heads to the House for its first vote.

The 27-24 vote by the General Assembly’s Appropriations Committee fell mostly along party lines, with majority Democrats in support and Republicans mostly opposed.

“I think this is a practical move for us to continue the conversation,” said state Rep. Juan Candelaria, D-New Haven, and a supporter.

Some Republicans supported continuing the discussion, but offered no guarantee they would vote for legal pot.

“I have some concerns about this moving forward, but this bill deserves an opportunity for a finer conversation,” said state Sen. Paul Formica, R-East Lyme, and a committee co-chairman.

Candelaria told the committee — given the fact that Massachusetts is scheduled to begin legal sales on July 1 and Rhode Island is talking about legalizing marijuana — it’s only a matter of time before Connecticut allows sales.

The bill does not legalize weed and instead requires state departments to develop a plan to oversee sales and determine costs involved. A plan would be presented to the Legislature by Oct. 1.

Legal sale of marijuana could bring in between $45 million and $150 million annually supporters say, depending on estimates.

State Rep. Pam Staneski, RMilford, cited the cost of creating a new regulatory body to oversee sales as a reason for voting no. “Right now, we don’t have money for that regulating body,” she said.

Peter Hvizdak / Hearst Connecticut Media David Lipton, managing partner of Advanced Grow Labs, a medical marijuana production facility in West Haven, inspects marijuana.