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Marijuana Decriminalization Set to Become Law in N.H.

FILE

A bill decriminalizing three-quarters of an ounce of marijuana in New Hampshire is headed to Governor Chris Sununu, who says he’ll sign it. 

Without debate, the House Thursday passed the measure on a voice vote. A similar bill has cleared this chamber several times before. But this is the first time such a proposal has cleared the Senate.

Representative Chuck Grassie of Rochester introduced this bill four decades ago. He says it’s time.

“We are going to get these people who are convicted of minor crimes of possession of small amounts of marijuana out of the criminal system, out of the jail system," Grassie said.

Under the measure, violators will get a $100 fine rather than face the one-year jail sentence currently on the books. 

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