Montana Code Annotated 2023

TITLE 16. ALCOHOL, TOBACCO, AND MARIJUANA

CHAPTER 12. MARIJUANA REGULATION AND TAXATION

Part 1. General Provisions

Limitations Of Act

16-12-108. Limitations of act. (1) This chapter does not permit:

(a) any individual to operate, navigate, or be in actual physical control of a motor vehicle, train, aircraft, motorboat, or other motorized form of transport while under the influence of marijuana or marijuana products;

(b) consumption of marijuana or marijuana products while operating or being in physical control of a motor vehicle, train, aircraft, motorboat, or other motorized form of transport while it is being operated;

(c) smoking or consuming marijuana while riding in the passenger seat within an enclosed compartment of a motor vehicle, train, aircraft, motorboat, or other motorized form of transport while it is being operated;

(d) production, delivery, distribution, purchase, or consumption of synthetic marijuana products;

(e) delivery or distribution of marijuana or marijuana products, with or without consideration, to a person under 21 years of age, unless the person is a registered cardholder;

(f) purchase, consumption, or use of marijuana or marijuana products by a person under 21 years of age, unless the person is a registered cardholder;

(g) possession or transport of marijuana or marijuana products by a person under 21 years of age unless the underage person is a registered cardholder or is at least 18 years of age and is an employee of a marijuana business licensed under this chapter and engaged in work activities;

(h) possession or consumption of marijuana or marijuana products or possession of marijuana paraphernalia:

(i) on the grounds of any property owned or leased by a school district, a public or private preschool, school, or postsecondary school as defined in 20-5-402;

(ii) in a school bus;

(iii) in a health care facility as defined in 50-5-101; or

(iv) on the grounds of any correctional facility;

(i) using marijuana or marijuana products in a location where smoking tobacco is prohibited;

(j) smoking marijuana in a hotel or motel room, except for a hotel or motel room that is designated as a smoking room and rented to a guest;

(k) consumption of marijuana or marijuana products:

(i) in a public place, except as allowed by the department; or

(ii) on trains, buses, or other forms of public transportation.

(l) conduct that endangers others;

(m) undertaking any task while under the influence of marijuana or marijuana products if doing so would constitute negligence or professional malpractice; or

(n) performing solvent-based extractions on marijuana using solvents other than water, glycerin, propylene glycol, vegetable oil, or food-grade ethanol unless licensed for this activity by the department.

(2) (a) A violation of subsections (1)(h)(i) through (1)(h)(iii) and (1)(i) through (1)(k) is subject to the penalties provided for in 50-40-115.

(b) In addition to the penalties provided for in 50-40-115, a person in violation of subsection (1)(h)(iv) may be subject to administrative action by the department of corrections and the department of justice, and a violation of subsection (1)(h)(iv) may be subject to the penalties provided for in 45-7-307.

(c) A violation of subsection (1)(n) is subject to the penalties provided for in 45-9-110(3).

(3) A person may not cultivate marijuana in a manner that is visible from the street or other public area.

(4) A hospice or residential care facility licensed under Title 50, chapter 5, may adopt a policy that allows use of marijuana by a registered cardholder.

(5) Nothing in this chapter may be construed to:

(a) require an employer to permit or accommodate conduct otherwise allowed by this chapter in any workplace or on the employer's property;

(b) prohibit an employer from disciplining an employee for violation of a workplace drug policy or for working while intoxicated by marijuana or marijuana products;

(c) prevent an employer from declining to hire, discharging, disciplining, or otherwise taking an adverse employment action against an individual with respect to hire, tenure, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment because of the individual's violation of a workplace drug policy or intoxication by marijuana or marijuana products while working;

(d) prohibit an employer from including in any contract a provision prohibiting the use of marijuana for a debilitating medical condition; or

(e) permit a cause of action against an employer for wrongful discharge pursuant to 39-2-904 or discrimination pursuant to 49-1-102.

(6) Nothing in this chapter may be construed to prohibit a person from prohibiting or otherwise regulating the consumption, cultivation, distribution, processing, sale, or display of marijuana, marijuana products, and marijuana paraphernalia on private property the person owns, leases, occupies, or manages, except that a lease agreement executed after January 1, 2021, may not prohibit a tenant from lawfully possessing and consuming marijuana by means other than smoking unless required by federal law or to obtain federal funding.

(7) A licensee who violates 15-64-103 or 15-64-104 or fails to pay any other taxes owed to the department under Title 15 is subject to revocation of the person's license from the date of the violation until a period of up to 1 year after the department certifies compliance with 15-64-103 or 15-64-104.

(8) Unless specifically exempted by this chapter, the provisions of Title 45, chapter 9, apply to the conduct of consumers, licensees, and registered cardholders.

History: En. Sec. 16, I.M. No. 190, approved Nov. 3, 2020; amd. Sec. 43, Ch. 576, L. 2021; amd. Sec. 6, Ch. 712, L. 2023; amd. Sec. 6, Ch. 746, L. 2023.