Smoking Lounges Could Be Coming to Nevada

Nevada cities and towns are free to open cannabis smoking lounges without state intervention, the state Legislative Counsel Bureau confirmed on Monday. That means Nevada could become the first state to allow consumers to smoke cannabis in clubs and lounges on a statewide basis.

Nevada cities would still have to pass local ordinances before lounges could open. An initiative to allow cannabis lounges statewide was killed by legislature earlier this year. Licenses could also be granted to concerts and events including the Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC).

No one wants to accommodate cannabis tourism more than Nevada. The state’s reciprocation laws enable dispensaries to accept medical cannabis cards from other states. Sen. Tick Segerblom, in addition, hasn’t been bashful about his intentions to attract tourism to the state specifically through cannabis. The problem is, with cannabis consumption explicitly banned in casinos and hotels, tourists have no place to legally consume cannabis.

Cannabis advocates want the same rights that businesses that sell alcohol enjoy. “Allowing regulated social use areas is a good solution that recognizes cannabis consumers’ rights to congregate just like alcohol drinkers can in bars while also protecting nonconsumers’ rights not to inhale secondhand smoke,” Tom Angell, founder of Marijuana Majority, told The Hill. “It should be a no-brainer, especially in tourist towns like Las Vegas where visitors don’t have private residences they can go back to imbibe.”

One person standing in the way, however, is Gov. Brian Sandoval. Gov. Sandoval told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that he doesn’t approve allowing cannabis lounges in the state. The reason, Sandoval said, is because Nevada doesn’t need to attract any more attention at this point from the federal government.

On July 1, Nevada became the fifth state to allow recreational cannabis when sales began. Although Denver grants smoking lounge permits under Initiative 300, no other state has been successful at allowing cannabis smoking lounges on the state level.