Proposal for state-run pot industry fails again in House

By RANDALL CHASE
Associated Press

DOVER, Del. (AP) — Legislation to establish a state-run marijuana industry in Delaware has again failed to clear the state House. The Democrat-controlled chamber voted 23-15 on Thursday to approve the bill, which fell two votes short of the required supermajority. The proposal requires a three-fifths majority because it creates a new tax, consisting of a 15% levy on retail marijuana sales. Thursday’s vote came two months after a similar measure failed in the House on a 23-14 vote. It also came just hours after Democratic Gov. John Carney’s office received a companion bill that legalizes possession of up to one ounce of marijuana by adults for recreational use.  Carney has said he opposes legalization, without which a state-run pot industry is a moot issue.