August 14, 2015

To the Honorable Members of

The Illinois House of Representatives,

99th General Assembly:

Today I return House Bill 3299 with a specific recommendation for change.

The four-year Medical Cannabis Pilot Program expires January 1, 2018. House Bill 3299 would extend the expiration of the pilot program until the date which is four years after the first dispensary organization license is issued by the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation – an extension of at least nineteen months.

When the pilot program was first authorized, the General Assembly provided for a four-year period. That period included time both for setting up the program and issuing licenses and for operations. In other words, the pilot program never provided a full four years for operations.

The sponsors note, however, that the start of operations has been delayed because then-Governor Quinn declined to make licensing decisions during the final months of his term. The intent of House Bill 3299 is to remedy that delay and provide program participants with the time for operations intended when the program was first authorized.

For that reason, an extension of 120 days is appropriate. That extension would account for the delay caused in the final months of the prior administration. A further extension of at least nineteen months total, however, is inconsistent with the pilot program’s initial authorizing statute. Moreover, given that no sale has yet occurred and we have not had an opportunity to evaluate the successes and failures of the pilot program, a further extension would be premature.

Therefore, pursuant to Section 9(e) of Article IV of the Illinois Constitution of 1970, I hereby return House Bill 3299, entitled “AN ACT concerning health”, with the following specific recommendation for change:

On page 3, by replacing lines 20 through 22 with following:

“Sec. 220. Repeal of Act. This Act is repealed on April 30, 2018 4 years after the effective date of this Act.”

With this change, House Bill 3299 will have my approval. I respectfully request your concurrence.

Sincerely,

Bruce Rauner

GOVERNOR