Denver Colorado Marijuana Laws – Updated for 2020

Marijuana’s Place in Colorado

In 2018, 34 new Marijuana-infused products were licensed in Colorado, and that number has nearly doubled for 2019 as the business is expected to double, if not triple, by 2021 based on the previous history. During those six months of 2018, marijuana-based companies sold 14.8% more edibles and 94.6% concentrated marijuana products more than in 2017 compared to other products and those numbers are only expected to grow as 2019 takes effect and as we sail into 2020.

Places like Colorado provide more than the typical brownie infusion of cannabis edible. Colorado is a great place for chocolate, of course, and there are plenty of places where you can buy fine truffles, high-end chocolates, suckers, gummies, drinks, candy, and even cannabis-infused butters and oils. There are even CBD donuts, Rice Krispie treats, lemonade, muffins, coffee and something like peanut butter. Basically, if you can bake it, you can get baked by it. Most of the time, anyway. There’s still a lot of confusion when it comes to baking in Colorado about the laws of what and when you can indulge, but the state is passing new laws they hope will answer these questions.

The Future of Denver Marijuana

Colorado voters passed Amendment 64 in November 2012, which legalized recreational marijuana use. Colorado lawmakers passed a similar package of bills last week, and it’s expected to become a law soon as we prepare for the arrival of 2020.

Colorado’s General Assembly passed measures that would allow the use of pot socially and medically under predetermined conditions. Some businesses will even able to get approval for cannabis delivery. The new Colorado marijuana laws of 2020 would provide a list of accepted medical conditions under which medical patients can use cannabis. The new laws could affect rulings already in place that allow the state to open up new employment opportunities and ease some of the current restrictions found among business owners.

Colorado’s governor on Tuesday signed a bill allowing marijuana cafes, lounges, dispensaries, tasting rooms, and other social-use businesses to operate legally. Colorado’s social-pot advocates saw a breakthrough in the state’s legislative process Tuesday when House Bill 1230 passed by a wide margin. Colorado dispensaries will be able to apply for a tasting-room license that will allow them to offer cannabis menus separate from what they already offer and more availability of how and where they can sell as well. Businesses who don’t already have a typical dispensary set up will be able to obtain a special consumption license from the government that allows cannabis to be delivered to their place of business and then allows them to sell marijuana products in conjunction to their business. The state said that mobile marijuana lounges—which can be operated by tourists’ vehicles such as party limos—would be allowed to operate under a temporary permit according to the new marijuana laws 2020.

Home delivery will get a later start than public businesses according to the new Denver marijuana laws 2020. First, the deliveries will only be available to those who have already been approved for medical marijuana consumption and have the documents to prove their medical conditions. At the beginning of 2021, recreational delivery will be not only allowed with specific security precautions, but active users will be able to order their products via websites or mobile apps thanks to modern technology.

The new Colorado marijuana laws in 2020 have unique guidelines that ensure each town has the right to set its laws, instead of sweeping regulations, much like the consumption of alcohol is decided among each town or city. Not only will cities determine whether or not they want to participate, but they will also decide if they allow deliveries from businesses outside of their jurisdiction.

According to the new marijuana laws of 2020, smoking on the property of educational buildings such as college campuses and college dormitories will not be allowed. Marijuana usage will come with age restrictions as well. Adults must be 18 to consume medical marijuana and 21 for recreational usage.


The vote does come with some downfalls for businesses and medical candidates who have already been approved for consumption. For the most part, the biggest downfall for the new Denver marijuana laws 2020 is that these companies who have already received special licensing will not only have to renew their license before 2020 even begins but will have to wait and see if their specific city will actually allow the continuation of the companies they’ve already established. Business owners and those approved with medical use will need to lobby the city council for special measures that will allow them to continue using their already approved licenses no matter what the council decides.

However, the new marijuana laws 2020 also provide some unique benefits if they are approved. The measure opens up the state’s medical-marijuana program to thousands of patients. This means that marijuana would be an acceptable prescription for those who are facing opioid addiction. Despite having to reregister for a license, medical users will be provided specific prescriptions from their doctors rather than the one-year limit they already receive.

New wording added into the bill approves autism as a medical condition with special additional requirements for younger patients that can allow for medical consumption, improving the list of medical conditions labeled as acceptable under the new House Bill marijuana laws of 2020. Something similar passed through the government in early 2018 but was vetoed by the governor at the time. This new law defines a stronger language for parents and children facing autism on all spectrums and helps to quantify the positive impact marijuana can have on those with autism.

The new bill isn’t only seeing a positive progression in autistic medical uses but a wide variety of medical professionals outside. According to the new laws set to take place in 2020, any specialized doctor including dentists, healthcare professionals and more can provide a medical marijuana license as long as it is related to the field in which they are working. The use of treating illnesses with marijuana has been around for 3000 years according to history experts. However, major medical professionals have deemed that the product does not have any positive impact on natural healing. Only one product, cannabidiol, has been approved as a treatment for different forms of epilepsy. The new marijuana laws of 2020 will allow Colorado to identify it’s on the list of what can be accepted and when marijuana can be used as a medical treatment for more than just epilepsy.

Medical patients, such as those suffering from autism, have often found that medical inhalers infused with marijuana are more efficient than other medical forms of the drug and this new house bill will allow medical professionals to prescribe this treatment to their clients. The product was originally considered a Non-conforming product because it couldn’t be smoked, vaporized or consumed by eating. Because of this, it was under heavy scrutiny in 2018 as Denver began regulating medical marijuana use. This meant that anyone who produced the product was under strict FDA-like regulations that were cost-ineffective due to the amounts of the necessary research for development. Because of the new laws put in place, the products won’t have to be under such regulated production, which could be both a positive for cost-effectiveness for customers and a negative if consumers are concerned about maintaining health risks.

The measure, Senate Bill 5, would create a special tax credit to pay for business licenses for people who live in poverty or moderate-income areas in the Denver area. The micro-licenses, known as mini-grants in the industry, would allow those who have previously struggled to find or maintain jobs to create their own business using companies that have already established their facilities. Owners would be able to keep whatever materials and products they can create under the Denver marijuana laws 2020 and continue to make money, boosting the economy in ways never before seen. The state departments in control of maintaining the marijuana business licenses and laws still have a lot to do before they hit the books, but minority advocates are getting excited about the possibility of minority inclusion the new laws would create across the board.


Because of current laws on the books, those who sell marijuana-based products can’t legally earn commissions or sales related bonuses for selling the product. The government still has marijuana listed as an illegal drug and therefore lawmakers believed it would be considered peddling an illegal and potentially harmful substance. Many companies found ways around these sideway laws, but the new legislation would allow the companies to operate legally and provide commission-based sales without interference from the government, adding even more revenue to the economy.

Lab testing of the pot is a sensitive issue for many producers because the results of the tests vary widely by labs. This creates confusion among those who produce on how to properly identify and label the products that are sold and what gets sold. The new amendments are hoping to address this situation by preventing unnecessary testing that would be both time and budget consuming for taxpayers and business owners alike. However, those new rules and regulations will be left to the MED for the most part and many producers are concerned about what this form of control from the government will mean for their production and sales cost.

Previous sales in the past five years of the legalized marijuana laws prove that the new regulations are both necessary and worth the effort to make safe places and products for consumers to use. Colorado’s two biggest months were April and May when the state took in an estimated $24 million in pot tax revenues. The state has now reached $500 million in total pot-related tax revenues—an amount that took only two years to double and could see another rise in two more years. Sales from marijuana usage have not only benefited consumers but have been returned to the economy through education, health care, and much-needed drug prevention programs for students. Colorado’s revenue from recreational marijuana sales has never dipped below $20 million, according to the state’s Department of Revenue. February’s total state revenue was $3.5 million, according to the Commerce Department.

Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper Polis said his state’s first-mover advantage in the cannabis industry will be key to developing a stronger sales engine force for Colorado by making sure the state continues to be the backbone of the marijuana market. He admits that the state can’t compete with larger economies like California, but because of their progressiveness, Colorado can become the leader of the industry.

With the success and positive ventures already set in place by Colorado and Gov. Polis, it’s easy to see the benefits of the marijuana industry. While a lot of the laws and regulations still need to be sorted by the state and local governments, people both in and around Denver are starting to get excited about the new laws. Some are even seeing new laws already taking place as soon as November and December of 2019, with more progress hoping to come as early as January of 2020. The government is hoping these new laws and regulations will help provide safer environments for both children and adults alike by providing safe products, age-restricted laws and much more.


While there’s a concern with users among how much control the bill allows government-led regulation, most admit that the new laws are necessary and will help create a more positive and useful experience for an industry that has already been created within the state. Having positive methods of testing decent products will make sure only the best options are available for both recreational and medical users, cutting down on risk factors previously found in the past. When the original laws were passed in 2012, illegal growth of marijuana saw a spike in crime among the state, the new laws hope to address this issue and make legal marijuana available to all citizens who wish to partake in a safe and comforting way.



The bottom line is – be safe, follow the rules, and enjoy some Mary Jane while you are in the Bicentennial State for your Rocky Mountain High!

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