Utah Code 58-37-3.9. Exemption for possession or use of cannabis to treat a qualifying illness

(1)

As used in this section:

Terms Used In Utah Code 58-37-3.9

Drug: means :

(A)

a substance recognized in the official United States Pharmacopoeia, Official Homeopathic Pharmacopoeia of the United States, or Official National Formulary, or any supplement to any of them, intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease in humans or animals;

(B)	a substance that is required by any applicable federal or state law or rule to be dispensed by prescription only or is restricted to administration by practitioners only;

(C)	a substance other than food intended to affect the structure or any function of the body of humans or other animals; and

(D)

substances intended for use as a component of any substance specified in Subsections (1)(r)(i)(A), (B), and (C). See Utah Code 58-37-2

Manufacture: means the production, preparation, propagation, compounding, or processing of a controlled substance, either directly or indirectly by extraction from substances of natural origin, or independently by means of chemical synthesis or by a combination of extraction and chemical synthesis. See Utah Code 58-37-2

Marijuana: means all species of the genus cannabis and all parts of the genus, whether growing or not, including:

(A)

seeds;

(B)	resin extracted from any part of the plant, including the resin extracted from the mature stalks;

(C)	every compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture, or preparation of the plant, seeds, or resin;

(D)	any synthetic equivalents of the substances contained in the plant cannabis sativa or any other species of the genus cannabis which are chemically indistinguishable and pharmacologically active; and

(E)

any component part or cannabinoid extracted or isolated from the plant, including extracted or isolated tetrahydrocannabinols. See Utah Code 58-37-2

Person: means any corporation, association, partnership, trust, other institution or entity or one or more individuals. See Utah Code 58-37-2

Production: means the manufacture, planting, cultivation, growing, or harvesting of a controlled substance. See Utah Code 58-37-2

State: means the state of Utah. See Utah Code 58-37-2

use: means the joint or individual ownership, control, occupancy, holding, retaining, belonging, maintaining, or the application, inhalation, swallowing, injection, or consumption, as distinguished from distribution, of controlled substances and includes individual, joint, or group possession or use of controlled substances. See Utah Code 58-37-2

(a)

“Cannabis” means marijuana.

(b)	“Cannabis product” means the same as that term is defined in Section 26B-4-201.

(c)	“Drug paraphernalia” means the same as that term is defined in Section 58-37a-3.

(d)	“Medical cannabis cardholder” means the same as that term is defined in Section 26B-4-201.

(e)	“Medical cannabis device” means the same as that term is defined in Section 26B-4-201.

(f)	“Medicinal dosage form” means the same as that term is defined in Section 26B-4-201.

(g)	“Tetrahydrocannabinol” means a substance derived from cannabis or a synthetic description as described in Subsection 58-37-4(2)(a)(iii)(AA).

(2)

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, except as otherwise provided in this section:

(a)

an individual is not guilty of a violation of this title for the following conduct if the individual engages in the conduct in accordance with Title 4, Chapter 41a, Cannabis Production Establishments and Pharmacies, or 2:

(i)	possessing, ingesting, inhaling, producing, manufacturing, dispensing, distributing, selling, or offering to sell cannabis or a cannabis product; or

(ii)	possessing cannabis or a cannabis product with the intent to engage in the conduct described in Subsection (2)(a)(i); and

(b)

an individual is not guilty of a violation of this title regarding drug paraphernalia if the individual, in accordance with Title 4, Chapter 41a, Cannabis Production Establishments and Pharmacies, and 2:

(i)	possesses, manufactures, distributes, sells, or offers to sell a medical cannabis device; or

(ii)	possesses a medical cannabis device with the intent to engage in any of the conduct described in Subsection (2)(b)(i).

(3)

(a)	As used in this Subsection (3), “smoking” does not include the vaporization or heating of medical cannabis.

(b)	2, does not authorize a medical cannabis cardholder to smoke or combust cannabis or to use a device to facilitate the smoking or combustion of cannabis.

(c)

A medical cannabis cardholder or a nonresident patient who smokes cannabis or engages in any other conduct described in Subsection (3)(b):

(i)	does not possess the cannabis in accordance with 2; and

(ii)

is, for the use or possession of marijuana, tetrahydrocannabinol, or marijuana drug paraphernalia for the conduct described in Subsection (3)(b):

(A)	for the first offense, guilty of an infraction and subject to a fine of up to $100; and

(B)	for a second or subsequent offense, subject to charges under this chapter.

(4)

An individual who is assessed a penalty or convicted of a crime under Title 4, Chapter 41a, Cannabis Production Establishments and Pharmacies, or 2, is not, based on the conduct underlying that penalty or conviction, subject to a penalty described in this chapter for:

(a)	the possession, manufacture, sale, or offer for sale of cannabis or a cannabis product; or

(b)	the possession, manufacture, sale, or offer for sale of drug paraphernalia.

(5)

(a)	Nothing in this section prohibits a person, either within the state or outside the state, from selling a medical cannabis device within the state.

(b)	A person is not required to hold a license under Title 4, Chapter 41a, Cannabis Production Establishments and Pharmacies, or 2, to qualify for the protections of this section to sell a medical cannabis device.

Amended by Chapter 329, 2023 General Session

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