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takyon writes:

This Independence Day weekend, Nevadans aged 21 and older will be able to purchase cannabis for recreational purposes at most existing medical dispensaries:

Marijuana sales in Nevada's newly minted legal recreational market will begin on Saturday. Starting at 12:01 a.m. July 1, adults age 21 and older will be able to buy up to an ounce of marijuana, or one-eighth of an ounce in marijuana-infused edibles and concentrates.

Retail sales will be subject to a 10% sales tax, which Nevada officials expect to generate more than $60 million in the first two years.

[...] Nevada joins Alaska, Colorado, Oregon and Washington in regulating legal marijuana sales, and California, Maine and Massachusetts are expected to join next year.

However, medical dispensaries can only sell the cannabis they have on hand on July 1st, 2017 as recreational with no chance to get more (recreational and medical must also be sold in separate rooms). Alcohol wholesalers appear to have control over the distribution licenses for cannabis for the first 18 months:

When the recreational marijuana statue was approved by voters, it gave alcohol wholesalers exclusive rights to the distribution licenses for the first 18 months it was enacted. Letters were mailed to eligible license holders in the state, but Chris Thompson, the executive director for the Las Vegas chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) said with few responses, tax commissioners approved a temporary regulation that would allow the department to make exceptions for non-wholesalers.

In May, the Independent Alcohol Distributors of Nevada filed a complaint saying the booze wholesalers should have exclusive rights to the licenses and that a May 31 license deadline for the wholesalers should not be enforced, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. At the end of May, a judge ruled in the alcohol wholesalers favor. But state officials have said they intend to appeal this ruling. "So basically, according to text of [the statue], the alcohol distributors get to set up regulated distribution methods," Thompson said. "We're the only state that does that."

That said, individual Nevada counties will be able to vote against allowing recreational cannabis dispensaries, and 12 of 16 currently ban medical cannabis dispensaries.

Those using it in public spaces could be subject to a $600 fine:

Due to an increase in taxes, prices for marijuana products will likely increase for both medical and recreational consumers. A joint (about a gram) may cost between $10 to $15, whereas an ounce (about 28 grams) might cost between $150 and $325, Gilbert said. The cost of edibles really depends on the product.

Where can you smoke or eat pot?

You cannot consume marijuana in public. You can only consume marijuana in a private residence. While you can smoke on your front porch, you cannot smoke at a concert, festival, bar or even a marijuana establishment. Tourists who purchase marijuana, in other words, have to find someone that will let them into their home.

A driver in Nevada can be convicted of a "marijuana DUI" if the driver is found to have 2 nanograms/ml of cannabis (or 5 ng/ml of cannabis metabolite) in their blood, or 10 nanograms/ml of cannabis (or 15 ng/ml of cannabis metabolite) in their urine.

One more thing: because liquor and gambling is regulated federally and cannabis is illegal federally, cannabis can not be smoked in bars or casinos.

I'm proud to be an American, where at least I know I'm free to consume cannabis under limited circumstances after a long drive and paying in cash.

Original Submission