Colorado residents can now legally possess up to two ounces of cannabis after a new bill was signed into law, doubling the legal possession limit in the state.
The new law signed by Colorado Governor Jared Polis increases the legal possession limit for recreational cannabis to two ounces. The bill to increase the cannabis possession limit passed through the Colorado House in the beginning of April.
Previously, anyone convicted of possessing one to two ounces of cannabis had to file a petition with the court to have their records sealed, which included notifying the district attorney’s office that charged them. Under the new law, courts are now required to approve requests to seal records without contacting a district attorney if all other criteria are met.
“This is a very exciting bill in the vein of criminal justice reform because, for far too long, the consequences for people who had a personal amount of cannabis before it had been legalized still had a long shadow on them for doing something that is fully legal today,” Governor Polis said. “They might have something on their record—and, of course, disproportionately people of color—that might get in the way of them getting loans or leases or licenses or jobs or mortgages or many other things.”
Governor Polis previously pardoned over 2,700 people who had convictions for possessing up to one ounce of cannabis. Polis said his office will begin reviewing records in preparation for additional pardons. Other members of the state government believe the new law is another step in the right direction.
“We believe, like the voters did in 2012, that cannabis isn’t worth haunting people’s efforts to get housing or a job, and we are taking meaningful efforts to help people get on with their lives,” State Representative Alex Valdez, who sponsored the bill, said.
