§ 869. Cultivation of cannabis; environmental and land use standards; regulation of cultivation

(a) A cannabis establishment shall not be regulated as “farming” under the Required Agricultural Practices, 6 Vt. Stat. Ann. chapter 215, or other State law, and cannabis produced from cultivation shall not be considered an agricultural product, farm crop, or agricultural crop for the purposes of 32 Vt. Stat. Ann. chapter 124, 32 V.S.A. § 9741, or other relevant State law.

(b) The cultivation, processing, and manufacturing of cannabis regulated under this chapter shall comply with all applicable State, federal, and local environmental, energy, or public health law, unless otherwise provided under this chapter.

(c) A cannabis establishment regulated under this chapter shall be subject to regulation under 24 Vt. Stat. Ann. chapter 117 as authorized by this chapter, unless otherwise provided under this chapter.

(d)(1) The cultivation, processing, and manufacturing of cannabis by all cultivators regulated under this chapter shall comply with the following sections of the Required Agricultural Practices as administered and enforced by the Board:

(A) section 6, regarding conditions, restriction, and operating standards;

(B) section 8, regarding groundwater quality and groundwater quality investigations; and

(C) section 12, regarding subsurface tile drainage.

(2) Application of or compliance with the Required Agricultural Practices under subdivision (1) of this subsection shall not be construed to provide a presumption of compliance with or exemption to any applicable State, federal, and local environmental, energy, public health, or land use law required under subsections (b) and (c) of this section.

(e) Persons cultivating cannabis or handling pesticides for the purposes of the manufacture of cannabis products shall comply with the worker protection standard of 40 C.F.R. part 170.

(f) Notwithstanding subsection (a) of this section, a cultivator licensed under this chapter who initiates cultivation of cannabis outdoors on a parcel of land shall:

(1) be regulated in the same manner as “farming” and not as “development” on the tract of land where cultivation occurs for the purposes of permitting under 10 Vt. Stat. Ann. chapter 151;

(2) not be regulated by a municipal bylaw adopted under 24 Vt. Stat. Ann. chapter 117 in the same manner that Required Agricultural Practices are not regulated by a municipal bylaw under 24 V.S.A. § 4413(d)(1)(A);

(3) be eligible to enroll in the Use Value Appraisal Program under 32 Vt. Stat. Ann. chapter 124 for the cultivation of cannabis;

(4) be exempt under 32 V.S.A. § 9741(3), (25), and (50) from the tax on retail sales imposed under 32 V.S.A. § 9771; and

(5) be entitled to the rebuttable presumption that cultivation does not constitute a nuisance under 12 Vt. Stat. Ann. chapter 195 in the same manner as “agricultural activities” are entitled to the rebuttable presumption, provided that, notwithstanding 12 V.S.A. § 5753(a)(1)(A), the cultivation is complying with subsections (b) and (d) of this section. (Added 2019, No. 164 (Adj. Sess.), § 7, eff. Oct. 7, 2020; amended 2021, No. 158 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. May 31, 2022; 2023, No. 65, § 6, eff. June 14, 2023.)