A legislative bill to legalize medical marijuana and hemp in Costa Rica has been introduced in the Costa Rican Congress.
The bill sponsored by the Citizen Actions Party (PAC) legislator Marvin Atencio has been in the works for the last 2 years. The head of the judicial affairs committee congressman Jose Alberto Alfaro of the Libertarian Movement (PL) party has indicated that the their is consolidate support for the bill in Congress.
The proposed law, bill # 19.256 titled the Law for the Investigation, Regulation and Control of Cannabis and Hemp plants for Medicinal, Food and Industrial Use is pending approval in Congress
The proposed law would create the Institute for Regulation and Control of Cannabis and Hemp (IIRCCA), which would be under the Department of Health. The Institute would be the authorized entity to confer licenses for the cultivation and dispensing of Cannabis and Hemp in Costa Rica.
Some of the Christian congressmen have tried to block the legislation. Congressman Abelino Esquivel of the Costa Rican Renewal Party (PRC) filed 1,000 motions against the proposed law in an effort to stall the advance of the bill.
Members of Congress have been traveling to Colorado, Washington and Nevada to understand and review the Cannabis industry in those states that have legalized its use.
