Bill > HF2206

Introduced Session

This bill relates to retail marijuana. DIVISION I —— MARIJUANA —— CRIMINAL PENALTIES. The bill modifies criminal penalties relating to marijuana by eliminating and modifying certain criminal provisions in Code chapter 124 (uniform controlled substances Act), and transferring certain criminal provisions from Code chapter 124 to new Code chapter 124F. MANUFACTURE, DELIVERY, OR POSSESSION WITH INTENT TO DELIVER MARIJUANA. The bill provides that an unauthorized person commits a class “C” felony punishable by confinement for no more than 10 years and a fine of at least $1,370 but not more than $13,660 if the person violates new Code section 124F.2(1)(a) and the controlled substance involves more than 50 kilograms of marijuana. Currently, such a person commits a class “B” felony punishable by confinement of no more than 50 years if the controlled substance involves more than 1,000 kilograms of a mixture or substance containing a detectable amount of marijuana, or a class “B” felony punishable by confinement of no more than 25 years if the controlled substance involves more than 100 kilograms of marijuana but not more than 1,000 kilograms. The bill provides that an unauthorized person commits a class “D” felony if the person violates new Code section 124F.2(1)(a) and the controlled substance involves more than 2 kilograms of marijuana but not more than 50 kilograms. A class “D” felony is punishable by confinement for no more than five years and a fine of at least $1,025 but not more than $10,245. Currently, such a person commits a class “C” felony if the controlled substance involves more than 50 kilograms of marijuana but not more than 100 kilograms. The bill provides that an unauthorized person commits an aggravated misdemeanor if the person violates new Code section 124F.2(1)(a) and the controlled substance involves more than 12 ounces of marijuana but not more than 2 kilograms. An aggravated misdemeanor is punishable by confinement for no more than two years and a fine of at least $855 but not more than $8,540. Currently, such a person commits a class “D” felony if the controlled substance involves 50 kilograms or less of marijuana. The bill provides that an unauthorized person commits a serious misdemeanor if the person violates new Code section 124F.2(1)(a) and the controlled substance involves more than 4 ounces of marijuana but not more than 12 ounces. A serious misdemeanor is punishable by confinement for no more than one year and a fine of at least $430 but not more than $2,560. Currently, such a person commits a class “D” felony. The bill provides that an unauthorized person commits a simple misdemeanor if the person violates new Code section 124F.2(1)(a) and the controlled substance involves 4 ounces or less of marijuana except as otherwise provided in the bill. A simple misdemeanor is punishable by confinement for no more than 30 days and a fine of at least $105 but not more than $855. Currently, such a person commits a class “D” felony. A person who is 18 years of age or older who unlawfully manufactures with the intent to distribute, distributes, or possesses with the intent to distribute marijuana to another person who is 18 years of age or older in or on, or within 1,000 feet of, the real property comprising a public or private elementary or secondary school, public park, public swimming pool, public recreation center, or on a marked school bus, may be sentenced up to an additional term of confinement of five years. POSSESSION OF MARIJUANA. The bill provides that if a person unlawfully possesses more than 6 ounces of marijuana but not more than 12 ounces, the person commits a serious misdemeanor. The bill provides that if a person unlawfully possesses more than one-half ounce of marijuana but not more than 6 ounces, the person commits a simple misdemeanor. The bill provides that if a person 21 years of age or older possesses one-half ounce or less of marijuana, the person does not commit a criminal offense but shall be assessed a civil penalty in the amount of $100. If the person is under 21 years of age, the person must complete 10 hours of unpaid community service and a substance abuse program, and inform the person’s parents or legal guardians. The bill provides that any records relating to the civil penalty shall not be displayed for public viewing on the Iowa court information system and such records shall not be kept in the criminal history files maintained by the department of public safety. RETAIL MARIJUANA —— POSSESSION LIMITS. The bill establishes possession limits for retail marijuana, defined in the bill. The bill prohibits a person 21 years of age or older from possessing more than 5 ounces of marijuana flower, or 500 milligrams of tetrahydrocannabinol contained in a product infused with marijuana. A person in possession of retail marijuana in excess of amounts equivalent to the amounts specified in the bill for the possession of marijuana is subject to prosecution for a simple or serious misdemeanor or a civil penalty. A retail marijuana store that sells retail marijuana in excess of the amounts allowed in the bill is subject to a fine or other discipline imposed by the division. Currently, if a person unlawfully possesses marijuana, the person shall be punished by imprisonment in the county jail for not more than six months or by a fine of not more than $1,000, or by both for a first offense. If the person has previously been convicted of marijuana possession, the person commits a serious misdemeanor under current law, and if the person has been convicted of marijuana possession two or more times, the person commits an aggravated misdemeanor. JUVENILE MARIJUANA OFFENSES. The bill specifies that the juvenile court shall have exclusive original jurisdiction in a proceeding concerning a minor who is alleged to have committed a violation of the bill. GATHERINGS WHERE CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES UNLAWFULLY USED. The bill strikes a provision making it a serious misdemeanor for a person to sponsor, promote, or aid in the sponsoring or promoting of a meeting or gathering with the knowledge or intent that marijuana be distributed, used, or possessed at the meeting or gathering in violation of Code chapter 124. ACCOMMODATION OFFENSE. The bill strikes a provision allowing a prosecution for unlawful delivery or possession with intent to deliver marijuana, if the prosecution proves that the defendant delivered or possessed with intent to deliver one-half ounce or less of marijuana which was not offered for sale, the defendant is guilty of an accommodation offense and rather than being sentenced for a class “D” felony under Code section 124.401(1)(d), the person is sentenced for a misdemeanor in violation of Code section 124.401(5). The bill makes conforming changes to Code sections 124.401G (Iowa hemp Act) and 124.413 (mandatory minimum sentences —— controlled substances). SECOND OR SUBSEQUENT OFFENSES. Currently, a person convicted of a second or subsequent offense under Code chapter 124 may be punished by imprisonment for a period not to exceed three times the term otherwise authorized, or fined not more than three times the amount otherwise authorized. The bill strikes the provision that allows for the use of a previous marijuana conviction in determining if a person has been convicted of a second or subsequent offense under Code chapter 124. MARIJUANA IN MOTOR VEHICLES. The bill prohibits a driver of a motor vehicle upon a public street or highway from using marijuana in the passenger area of the motor vehicle. The bill also prohibits a driver or passenger of or in a motor vehicle upon a public street or highway from possessing marijuana in the passenger area of a motor vehicle except in a sealed, odor proof, child resistant container. The bill defines “passenger area” as the area designed to seat the driver and passengers while the motor vehicle is in operation and any area that is readily accessible to the driver or a passenger while in their seating positions, including the glove compartment. A person who knowingly violates this provision of the bill is guilty of a simple misdemeanor. A simple misdemeanor is punishable by confinement for no more than 30 days and a fine of at least $105 but not more than $855. The bill prohibits a person from operating a motor vehicle with 50 or more nanograms of tetrahydrocannabinol in the person, as measured in the person’s blood. A person who operates a motor vehicle with 50 or more nanograms of tetrahydrocannabinol in the person shall have that person’s driver’s license suspended for 180 days for a first offense and one year for each subsequent offense. A person who refuses to submit to chemical testing for tetrahydrocannabinol shall have the person’s driver’s license suspended for one year for a first offense, and two years for each subsequent offense. EXPUNGEMENT. The bill provides that upon application by a defendant convicted of a felony offense under Code chapter 124 (controlled substances) related to the possession or transfer of marijuana prior to January 1, 2027, the court shall enter an order expunging the record of such a criminal case. A person may only seek an expungement once, but an application may request the expungement of multiple nonviolent offenses if the offenses arose from the same transaction or occurrence. Under current law, misdemeanor marijuana offenses may be expunged pursuant to Code section 901C.3 (misdemeanor expungement). The bill requires each court, on the effective date of the bill, to review its records to identify persons convicted of marijuana offenses that would have been legal under the bill and to automatically expunge each such conviction. DIVISION II —— RETAIL MARIJUANA. Division II of the bill relates to the regulation of retail marijuana in Iowa. The bill grants the division of the department of revenue responsible for issuing alcohol licenses (division) the authority to regulate the cultivation, production, transportation, testing, and sale of retail marijuana and retail marijuana products, including by issuing appropriate licenses and promulgating rules. The bill requires the division to transfer half of any application fee collected to the local jurisdiction in which the retail marijuana establishment will be located. The bill allows local jurisdictions to impose limitations on the operation of retail marijuana establishments, including by prohibiting their operation. The bill directs the division to develop and maintain a seed-to-sale tracking system to track retail marijuana from the seed or immature plant stage until it is sold to a consumer at a retail marijuana establishment. The bill requires the division to prioritize applicants for state licenses who currently hold a license pursuant to Code chapter 124E (medical cannabidiol) or that are businesses majority-owned by women, citizens or permanent legal residents of Iowa, or disabled veterans. The bill requires the division to issue licenses to businesses that are majority-owned by persons who are racial minorities in a proportion that meets or exceeds the percentage of persons in this state who are racial minorities according to the most recent federal decennial census. The bill prohibits the owner of a retail marijuana establishment from interfering with activities of employees relating to labor organizations. LOCAL LICENSES. The bill requires the division to transmit any application for a retail marijuana establishment it receives to the local jurisdiction where the establishment will be located within seven days of receipt unless the local jurisdiction has prohibited the operation of retail marijuana establishments. The local jurisdiction must then inform the division whether the application complies with any local restrictions on the operation of retail marijuana establishments it may have imposed. The bill requires a person to receive approval from both the division and the local jurisdiction before operating a retail marijuana establishment. A person whose application for a license is denied is entitled to a hearing and judicial review pursuant to Code chapter 17A. RETAIL MARIJUANA LICENSES. Ninety days prior to the expiration date of an existing license, the division shall notify the licensee of the expiration date by first class mail at the licensee’s address of record with the division. A licensee may apply for the renewal of an existing license to the division not less than 30 days prior to the date of expiration. RETAIL MARIJUANA STORES. The bill allows a retail marijuana store to purchase retail marijuana from a retail marijuana cultivation facility. A retail marijuana store may also sell prepackaged and labeled retail marijuana products. A retail marijuana store must track all of its retail marijuana and retail marijuana products from the point that they are transferred to the retail marijuana store to the point of sale. The bill prohibits a retail marijuana store from selling more than one ounce of retail marijuana or its equivalent to a person in a single transaction, excluding nonedible, nonpsychoactive retail marijuana products. Prior to initiating a sale, the bill requires a retail marijuana store employee to verify that purchaser has a valid identification card showing that the person is 21 years of age or older. If a purchaser presents a retail marijuana store employee with fraudulent proof of age, any action taken in reliance on that proof of age shall not be grounds for the revocation or suspension of a license. The bill allows a retail marijuana store to provide to the state hygienic laboratory a sample of its products for testing and research purposes. The retail marijuana store shall maintain a record of what was provided to the laboratory and the results of the testing. The bill prohibits a retail marijuana store from selling any products other than retail marijuana, retail marijuana products, marijuana accessories, nonconsumable products such as apparel, and marijuana products such as childproof packaging containers. The bill prohibits the division from issuing more than one retail marijuana store license per county, except that the division may, upon receipt of a petition, issue one additional retail marijuana store license per 100,000 population in the county. The bill allows a location licensed as a retail marijuana store to also be licensed as a medical cannabis dispensary, pursuant to rules adopted by the division in consultation with the Iowa department of public health. RETAIL MARIJUANA CULTIVATION. The bill allows the division to issue retail marijuana cultivation facility licenses to persons who cultivate retail marijuana for sale and distribution to retail marijuana stores, manufacturers, or other cultivation facilities. The bill requires a retail marijuana cultivation facility to remit any applicable tax due. The bill also requires a retail marijuana cultivation facility to track the marijuana it cultivates from seed or immature plant to wholesale purchase. RETAIL MARIJUANA PRODUCTS MANUFACTURING LICENSES. The bill allows the division to issue retail marijuana products manufacturing licenses to persons who manufacture retail marijuana products. The bill requires a retail marijuana products manufacturer to track all of its retail marijuana from the point it is either transferred from its retail marijuana cultivation facility or the point when it is delivered to the retail marijuana products manufacturer from a retail marijuana cultivation facility to the point of transfer to a retail marijuana store. The bill requires retail marijuana products to be manufactured and prepared in a facility that only manufactures retail marijuana products, except that premises may be shared with a medical cannabis-infused products manufacturer so long as a virtual or physical separation of inventory is maintained. RETAIL MARIJUANA USE —— PROTECTIONS. The bill prohibits the state and its political subdivisions from taking certain actions against a person on the basis that the person has engaged in conduct allowed by the bill. The state and its political subdivisions shall not prosecute a person, deny a person a professional license, deny a person a benefit or entitlement, deny a person custody or visitation of a child, deny a person employment or a contract, or deny a person medical care on the basis that the person has engaged in conduct allowed by the bill. The bill also prohibits the state or a political subdivision from denying employment or a contract to a person on the basis of a person’s prior conviction of a nonviolent marijuana offense that does not involve distribution to a minor. The bill excludes engaging in conduct allowed by the bill from being classified as a violation of a condition of parole, probation, or pretrial release unless there is a specific finding that the conduct could create a danger to the individual or another person. The bill does not prohibit a governmental employer from disciplining an employee or contractor for ingesting marijuana at work or working while under the influence of marijuana, nor does it prohibit a licensing board from imposing a penalty on a person for engaging in conduct that would constitute negligence or professional malpractice. The protections of the bill do not apply to the extent that they conflict with a governmental employer’s obligations under federal law or would disqualify a governmental employer from a monetary or licensing-related benefit under federal law. FEES. The bill allows the division to collect and charge fees. The bill sets the application fee for a person applying for a new retail marijuana establishment license at $5,000, which shall be divided evenly between the division and the local jurisdiction where the license is proposed to be issued. The bill permits a local jurisdiction to impose operating fees on retail marijuana establishments to which it has granted a license. LICENSE DISCIPLINE. The bill permits the division, on its own motion or complaint, and after investigation, notice, a public hearing, and opportunity to be heard, to suspend or revoke a license if the licensee or any of its agents or employees violate a provision of the bill or a rule promulgated by the division. The division may administer oaths and issue subpoenas to require the presence of persons and the production of documents. The division may impose discipline pursuant to rules and Code chapter 17A. INSPECTION. The bill requires a licensee to keep a complete set of all records necessary to show fully the business transactions of the licensee, all of which shall be open at all times during business hours for the inspection and examination by the division or its duly authorized representatives. The bill requires the licensed premises of a retail marijuana establishment, including any places of storage where retail marijuana or retail marijuana products are stored, cultivated, sold, dispensed, or tested to be subject to inspection by the state or local jurisdictions and their investigators, during all business hours and other times of apparent activity, for the purpose of inspection or investigation. STATE MARIJUANA EXCISE TAX. The bill imposes an excise tax on consumers at the rate of 10 percent of the sale price on each sale of retail marijuana. The tax shall be paid by the consumer to the retail marijuana establishment at the time of sale, and each retail marijuana establishment shall remit the tax collected to the division on the 15th day of each month. Revenues generated by the excise tax shall be deposited in the community reinvestment fund, mental health services and substance use disorder prevention fund, and local public safety fund created in the bill. Moneys in the community reinvestment fund, mental health services and substance use disorder prevention fund, and local public safety fund shall be appropriated by the general assembly for purposes enumerated in the bill. OCCUPATIONAL LICENSING PROTECTIONS. The bill prohibits a professional or occupational licensing board from imposing discipline on a licensee for providing services related to retail marijuana establishments. The bill also prohibits a professional or occupational licensing board from denying a license to a person based on a person’s past employment with a retail marijuana establishment. RULEMAKING. The bill requires the division to adopt rules within one year of the effective date of the bill to adopt rules for the implementation of the bill. The rules shall not prohibit the operation of retail marijuana establishments or make the operation of retail marijuana establishments so costly as to be impractical. Required rules include but are not limited to rules relating to applications, fees, licensure, security requirements, labeling requirements, health and safety requirements, restrictions on advertising, cultivation, testing, and penalties. The division shall also develop and regularly update safety materials to be distributed upon the sale of retail marijuana. ACTS PROHIBITED. The bill does not allow the transfer of marijuana to a person under 21 years of age or the possession of marijuana by a person under 21 years of age. PROPERTY RIGHTS. The bill does not require the owner of a property to allow the consumption, cultivation, display, sale, or transfer of marijuana at that property. However, in the case of a residential dwelling, a landlord or property manager shall not prohibit the possession of retail marijuana or medical cannabis or the consumption of retail marijuana or medical cannabis by means other than smoking except under certain circumstances. The bill allows a landlord to take action against a tenant after a warning if the tenant’s use of marijuana creates an odor that interferes with the peaceful enjoyment of property by other tenants. The bill prohibits a landlord from discriminating against a tenant or applicant on the basis of a past conviction of a marijuana offense that would have been legal under the bill. LAW ENFORCEMENT. The bill prohibits law enforcement agencies from expending resources on the investigation of or arrest for activity related to marijuana that is in violation of federal law if the officer performing the investigation or arrest has reason to believe that the activity complies with the requirements of the bill. The bill also prohibits an agency or political subdivision of the state from taking an adverse action against a person on the sole basis that the person has violated a federal law related to marijuana. SURCHARGE. The bill allows a county that has not prohibited the sale of retail marijuana to impose a 1 percent surcharge on the retail sales price of retail marijuana. The surcharge shall be administered by the department of revenue and funds collected by the department of revenue shall be remitted to the county on a quarterly basis. The bill includes additional provisions regarding the implementation and operation of retail marijuana surcharges. DIVISION III —— EFFECTIVE DATE. The bill takes effect upon enactment, except that the division of the department of revenue responsible for issuing alcohol licenses shall not issue a license to operate a retail marijuana establishment prior to January 1, 2027. DIVISION IV —— CODE EDITOR DIRECTIVE. The bill directs the Code editor to create two subchapters in new Code chapter 124F. The first subchapter shall be designated “criminal penalties” and the second subchapter shall be designated “retail marijuana”.

AI Summary

Committee Categories

Jerome Amos (D)*,  Ruth Ann Gaines (D)*,  Daniel Gosa (D)*,  Rob Johnson (D)*,  Bob Kressig (D)*,  Monica Kurth (D)*,  Elinor Levin (D)*,  Mary Madison (D)*,  Larry McBurney (D)*,  Angel Ramirez (D)*,  J.D. Scholten (D)*,  Beth Wessel-Kroeschell (D)*,  Aime Wichtendahl (D)*,  Ross Wilburn (D)*,  Elizabeth Wilson (D)*, 

Introduced, referred to Judiciary. H.J. 174. (on 01/29/2026)

Official Document