Alaska Approves On-Site Marijuana Use

Alaska is associated with many good things: cold-weather cruises, salmon bakes, a 1996 feel-good movie starring Pete from Mad Men and a baby polar bear, TK. And now, we can add one more entry to the list: on Tuesday, Alaska Lt. Gov. Kevin Myers signed new legislation making the state the first to allow on-site consumption at licensed dispensaries. In layman’s terms, if you happen to be passing through the state and you’re over 21, it’s soon going to be totally cool to head into a store, buy a joint, and smoke up on-site.

Beginning April 11th, licensed marijuana dispensary owners can apply for a “special onsite use endorsement” that will allow them to set up designated smoking areas where patrons will be permitted to smoke cannabis. The area will be distinct from the retail space, meaning there’ll likely be a patio or outdoor lounge where customers can smoke, or the two spaces will have to be separated by a door or a wall.

Per the Associated Press, businesses will also have to provide proper security and ventilation so they can meet the approval of the Marijuana Control Board. The regulations also stipulate that vendors will only be allowed to sell up to one gram of cannabis and “edible marijuana products not to exceed 10 mg of THC to any one person per day,” so you can’t just, like, grab 10 edibles at once and go to town on them.

According to Erik Altieri, the executive director of the marijuana law reform organization NORML, Alaska’s legislation is significant — not just for visitors who want to smoke up in public or for the vendors who cater to them, but from a social justice perspective as well.

https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-news/alaska-weed-consumption-on-site-pot-bar-807817/