Its over. The Arizona State Legislature wrapped up and called sine die on Saturday morning around 4:30am , June 13, 2026. From ignoring the Voter Protection Act to attempts at breaking the vertical licensing structure, three cannabis related bills are dead and one is waiting on a veto.
Sine die is a Latin term that means “without a day.” In legislative terms, it means lawmakers have officially adjourned the session without setting a date to return. Put simply, sine die is the final day of the legislative session. Once the House and Senate adjourn sine die, the regular session is over. For bills still moving through the process, sine die can be the difference between becoming law and dying while waiting on the calendar. Any bill that has not completed the legislative process before adjournment is generally dead for the year.
SB1725 Finally Runs Out of Road
That means the clock finally ran out on SB1725, Senator J.D. Mesnard’s marijuana nuisance bill, one of the most controversial cannabis measures of the 2026 legislative session. For months, the bill seemed impossible to kill. Despite serious concerns that the measure violated Arizona’s Voter Protection Act, Republican leadership continued moving the bill through the process. As the session entered its final days, leadership repeatedly signaled that SB1725 was still alive, keeping patients, consumers, and advocates on edge.
On Monday, June 1, SB1725 appeared on the House Committee of the Whole calendar, a clear indication that leadership considered moving the bill to the next stage of the process. Cannabis advocates immediately went on alert and expected debate and a vote. Instead, leadership retained the bill on the calendar and took no action.
The message was clear: the bill was not dead yet.
Then, on Tuesday, June 9, leadership tried again. SB1725 once again appeared on the COW calendar, once again raising concerns that the measure was about to move. Advocates prepared for another fight. Once again, however, leadership retained the bill and no vote occurred.
After that, the trail went cold. No floor debate. No vote. No public explanation. Just silence.
Lawmakers faced questions about whether SB1725 required a three-fourths vote under the Voter Protection Act because it affected rights Arizona voters established through Proposition 203 and 207. That question carried enormous consequences. The House Rules attorney flagged the issue after Arizona NORML raised concerns to them personally. A simple majority is one thing. A three-fourths supermajority is something else entirely. If leadership lacked the votes, bringing the bill to the floor would have risked a public defeat.
Whether the VPA concerns, a lack of votes, or a combination of the two caused the collapse, the result remained the same. The bill stalled. Then sine die arrived. When lawmakers gaveled out on June 13, SB1725 died exactly where it sat: stranded in the House Committee of the Whole with no path forward.
In the end, SB1725 joined its legislative twin, SCR1048, in the graveyard of failed marijuana nuisance proposals. SCR1048 died on the Senate floor in February after supporters failed to secure enough votes. SB1725 survived a few months longer, but ultimately reached the same destination.
Both measures are dead. Hopefully they stay that way. If lawmakers bring the idea back in a future session, they should first meet the constitutional and statutory requirements necessary to amend a voter approved law.
Cannabis Expansion Dies Waiting
That also means both measures that would have expanded Arizona’s cannabis market ran out of time while they waited for the House Rules Chairman to move them.
As a result, both SB1641, the marijuana producer licensure bill, and SB1128, the striker amendment to SB1363, died when lawmakers adjourned sine die.
SB1641 would have created a marijuana producer license and started breaking apart Arizona’s vertically integrated licensing structure. The measure would have allowed cultivation and manufacturing operations to operate without owning a dispensary, opening the door for smaller businesses to enter the market.
SB1128 would have brought legal marijuana sales to small rural communities that Arizona’s existing licensing system left behind. Supporters argued the measure would expand access to legal cannabis in areas where voters legalized marijuana but still lack dispensaries years after the passage of Proposition 207.
Neither bill failed a floor vote. Instead, both measures sat in House Rules until the Legislature adjourned and the clock ran out on the session.
One Bill Left Standing
That leaves Senator Bolick’s SB1476, the felony prenatal substance exposure bill, as the only cannabis related measure from this session to make it all the way to Governor Hobbs’ desk. However, considering the Governor’s long standing support for reproductive rights and concerns about government intrusion into pregnancy related medical decisions, SB1476 appears headed for a veto.
The proposal would create a new felony offense for prenatal substance exposure and dramatically expand the legal consequences facing pregnant women. Under the bill, a positive test for a controlled substance listed in Arizona’s criminal code could trigger not only a Department of Child Safety investigation, but also criminal prosecution.
One of the most controversial aspects of SB1476 is what it does not include. The measure contains no exemption for lawful medical use, including physician recommended medical cannabis under the Arizona Medical Marijuana Act. That means a pregnant medical marijuana patient following a doctor’s recommendation could find herself facing the same criminal penalties as someone using an illicit substance.
If signed into law, the bill would create a new pathway where pregnancy related substance use could move beyond the family court and child welfare systems and directly into the criminal justice system. Instead of simply fighting a DCS case, parents could find themselves defending against felony charges that carry lifelong consequences.
With the legislative session now over and the measure awaiting action from the Governor, all eyes turn to Hobbs to see whether she signs the bill, vetoes it, or allows it to become law without her signature.
Sine Die 2026: Three Cannabis Bills Dead, One Awaiting Hobbs
From attempts to trample on the will of Arizona voters through SB1725, to proposals that would criminalize pregnancy under SB1476, to efforts aimed at reshaping Arizona’s cannabis licensing system through SB1641 and SB1128, the 2026 legislative session delivered no shortage of controversy for patients, consumers, and the cannabis industry.
With sine die now behind us, three of the four major cannabis measures are officially dead. When Governor Hobbs vetoes SB1476, no cannabis related legislation from the 2026 session will become law.
At A Glance
SB1476- Prenatal Substance Abuse Felony
Heading to Governor’s desk
SB1725- Marijuana Smoking Nuisance
Never heard House Committee Of Whole
SB1641- Marijuana Producer Licenses
Never heard House Rules
SB1128- (newly) Marijuana Rural Licenses
Never Heard House Rules
Details
SB1476 Child Neglect; Prenatal Substance Exposure
Waiting on Governors Action
01/29/2026 Senate First Read
01/29/2026 Assigned Senate Judiciary and Elections
02/02/2026 Senate Second Read
02/18/2026 Passed Senate Judiciary and Elections (4-2-1)
02/23/2026 Passed Senate Rules
02/23/2026 Senate Caucus
02/26/2026 Senate(COW) Committee Of Whole
02/26/2026 Passed Senate Third Read (16-14-1)
02/27/2026 Transmit to House
03/09/2026 House First Read
03/09/2026 Assigned House Judiciary Committee
03/10/2026 House Second Read
3/25/2026 Passed House Judiciary Committee (6-2-1)
3/30/2026 Passed House Rules Committee (8-0)
03/31/2026 House Caucus
04/15/2026 Passed House Committee Of Whole (COW)
06/11/2026 Passed House Third Read
06/11/2026 Transmitted to Senate
06/12/2026 Transmitted to Governor
Makes it a crime of child neglect in Arizona by making it a Class 6 felony for a person who has custody of a child to engage in conduct that harms the child and constitutes neglect as defined in existing law. It also establishes an affirmative defense for the child’s mother if she completed alcohol or drug treatment during pregnancy.
Sections Affected:
13-3619.01 Added
Sponsor:
Bolick Prime
Voter Protection Act Prop 103- No (but might need to be)
Senate Engrossed Version
SB 1641 Marijuana Producers; Licensure
Waiting on House Rules
No Movement
01/30/2026 Introduced Senate
02/05/2026 Senate First Read
02/05/2026 Assigned Senate Regulatory Affairs and Government Efficiency (RAGE)
02/18-2026 Passed Senate Regulatory Affairs and Government Efficiency (RAGE) (vote 8-0-0)
03/11/2026 Due Pass Senate Rules
03/11/2026 Caucus
03/11/2026 Due Pass as Amended Senate (COW) Committee Of Whole
03/11/2026 Passed Senate Third Read (23-5-2)
03/16/2026 House First Read
03/16/2026 Assigned House Commerce Committee
03/17/2026 House Second Read
03/24/2026 Passed House Commerce Committee (7-3)
A marijuana producer is a licensed entity that can cultivate, process, manufacture, package, and store marijuana and marijuana products at a single location, but cannot sell or transfer them directly to consumers. Applications for these licenses will open on January 1, 2029, but until January 1, 2032, only entities with contracts established by January 1, 2026 with a marijuana establishment, nonprofit dispensary, or management company are eligible. During this period, licenses cannot be transferred or subleased, and unlicensed entities are prohibited from cultivating or manufacturing at producer sites. Beginning in 2030, the department will review market conditions annually and may issue additional licenses if it determines consumers would benefit. Marijuana producers are subject only to the same rules as marijuana establishments unless the law specifically provides otherwise.
Sections Affected:
36-2850 Amended
36-2854 Amended
36-2857 Amended
36-2858 Amended
36-2859 Amended
36-2860 Amended
36-2861 Amended
36-2864 Amended
36-2865 Amended
Sponsor:
Payne
VPA- Voter Protection Act (Prop 105): Yes
MORE INFO
SENATE FACT SHEET: 02/16/2026 RAGE
Adopted Amendments Senate
SENATE FACT SHEET: 03/11/2026 RAGE As Passed COW
SB1725: Marijuana Smoke; Public; Private Nuisance
Waiting on House Committee of Whole (COW)
02/04/2026 Senate Introduced
02/05/2026 Senate First Read
02/05/2026 Assigned Senate Judiciary (JUD)
02/20/2026 Passed Senate Senate Judiciary and Elections (JUDE) (vote 5-2-0)
02/25/2026 Passed Senate Rules (5-4-0)
02/25/2026 Senate Caucus
03/03/2026 Due Passed as Amended Senate (COW) Committee Of Whole
03/09/2026 Senate Third Read Passed (20-9-1)
03/16/2026 House First Read
03/16/2026 Assigned House Judiciary Committee
03/17/2026 House Senond Read
3/25/2026 Passed House Judiciary Committee (8-1-0-1)
03/30/2026 Passed House Rules Committee (5-3-0)
03/31/2026 House Caucus
Expands Arizona’s nuisance laws to explicitly treat excessive marijuana smoke and odor as a type of “crime” for purposes of declaring a residential property a nuisance, allowing affected residents, homeowner/property owner associations, and government attorneys to sue to abate the activity, with notice procedures and potential cost liens if an owner who knows about the activity fails to act. The bill also amends the criminal and public nuisance statutes to create presumptions that producing excessive marijuana smoke and odor endangers others’ health/safety (criminal nuisance) and is injurious, offensive, and interferes with property enjoyment (public nuisance)
Sections Affected:
12-991 Amended
13-2908 Amended
13-2917 Amended
Sponsor:
Mesnard
VPA- Voter Protection Act (Prop 105)– NO, but should be
MORE INFO
SENATE FACT SHEET: 02/16/2026 JUDE
SENATE FACT SHEET: 03/03/2026 JUDE As Passed COW
Senate Engrossed Version
SB1128 (now) Marijuana Rural Opportunity Initiative
03/31/2026 Striker Passed House Appropriations Committee (10-7-2)
To establish the Rural Opportunity Initiative (ROI), which authorizes the Arizona Department of Health Services to issue up to 18 marijuana establishment licenses and 18 corresponding nonprofit medical marijuana dispensary registration certificates to create new dual licensees in qualifying unserved rural communities — defined as cities, towns, or census-designated areas with populations under 50,000 that contain parcels located at least 25 miles from an existing marijuana retail location. Applications are accepted electronically April 1–14, 2027, reviewed in time-stamp order, and subject to a structured approval process requiring property ownership documentation, local zoning compliance, background attestations, and good standing with the Corporation Commission. ROI licensees must open within 18 months of license issuance, operate a minimum of 24 hours per week, and may only relocate to another qualifying unserved rural community that has not opted out. Cities, towns, and counties may opt out of the ROI by submitting certified resolutions to the Department at least one month before the application period opens. The legislation also expands existing marijuana establishment licensing rules, including 26 additional licenses under a Social Equity Ownership Program, and mandates that the Department adopt rules by January 1, 2025 to regulate marijuana delivery, with unauthorized delivery subject to a $20,000 civil penalty per violation enforceable by the Attorney General.
Original Sponsor- Gowan
Amendment Sponsor -Livingston
VPA. 3/4 voter requirement- YES
HOUSE – Appropriations – Strike Everything