CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP) – If Nevada officials have their way, tourists and residents alike will be smoking pot ahead of Independence Day. But before recreational marijuana launches in the state best known for slot machines and showgirls, a judge must decide who has the right to distribute what promises to be Nevada’s newest cash crop.
The powerful liquor lobby and state-regulated medical marijuana dealers are fighting over who should be licensed to distribute marijuana from growers to retailers. Nevada is the only legal pot state in which alcohol distributors were given the first shot at distribution licenses under the law that voters approved in November.
But the state says it determined that interest wasn’t high enough among alcohol distributors, so it has the authority to allow existing medical shops to provide pot to retailers already qualified to sell it. That system would be used until permanent regulations are put in place Jan. 1, 2018.
The liquor distributors sued last month, arguing they get first dibs.
The legal battle comes as the state aims to launch recreational pot sales at existing medical marijuana dispensaries July 1.