The office of New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said Tuesday that cannabis consumers “have purchased more than $678.4 million worth of adult-use cannabis products and $331.6 million in medical products since April 1, 2022,” and that, to date, “the state has recorded more than 21 million transactions with $75 million in cannabis excise taxes going to the state general fund and local communities.”

“This is a huge milestone for New Mexico’s cannabis industry,” Lujan Grisham, a Democrat, said in a statement. “Nearly two years after beginning sales, New Mexico is on the map as a premier hub for legal and safe cannabis and the thriving business community that comes with it.”

The $1 billion threshold represents a significant milestone for New Mexico’s legal weed industry, which opened for business in April of 2022. (The state officially legalized adult-use marijuana a year earlier, in 2021, when Lujan Grisham signed into law the Cannabis Regulation Act.)

Almost one year exactly, Lujan Grisham announced that the state had hit $300 million in adult-use pot sales.

“In just one year, hundreds of millions of dollars in economic activity has been generated in communities across the state, the number of businesses continues to increase, and thousands of New Mexicans are employed by this new industry,” Lujan Grisham said at the time. “I’m excited to see what the future holds as we continue to develop an innovative and safe adult-use cannabis industry.”

In that announcement, the governor’s office said that monthly sales “have remained consistent throughout the last year, with March 2023 marking the highest adult-use sales at $32.3 million,” and that, as of March 2023, “more than $27 million in cannabis excise taxes has gone to the state general fund and to local communities.”

“To date, the state has recorded more than 10 million transactions. More data on sales and licenses can be found here,” the office said in a press release at the time.

In Tuesday’s announcement of the $1 billion milestone, the governor’s office said that “Albuquerque remains the top city in the state for cannabis sales with more than $202 million in adult-use products being sold since legalization,” while “Sunland Park, one of the many communities that has been positively impacted by cannabis tourism, recorded $57.4 million in adult-use sales.”

It isn’t a surprise that Albuquerque, New Mexico’s largest city, would boast the highest sales tallies. The city reportedly has more cannabis dispensaries than it does liquor stores.

Tuesday’s press release from the governor’s office indicated that smaller communities in New Mexico “are also reaping the benefits of the flourishing cannabis industry.”

“Municipalities like Las Vegas, Silver City, and Deming have each seen more than $5 million in adult-use sales since April 2022,” the press release said. “As of March 1, 2024, the state has issued 2,873 cannabis licenses across New Mexico, including 1,050 retailers, 878 manufacturers, and 459 micro producers.”

Lujan Grisham’s signing of the Cannabis Regulation Act in 2021 made New Mexico the 18th state to legalize adult-use marijuana.

“The legalization of adult-use cannabis paves the way for the creation of a new economic driver in our state with the promise of creating thousands of good paying jobs for years to come,” Lujan Grisham said at the time. “We are going to increase consumer safety by creating a bona fide industry. We’re going to start righting past wrongs of this country’s failed war on drugs. And we’re going to break new ground in an industry that may well transform New Mexico’s economic future for the better.”

Her office projected that “sales of adult-use recreational cannabis could amount to $318 million in the first year, creating over several years what could be more than 11,000 new jobs,” and pointed to preliminary estimates that suggested “the excise tax will raise at least $20 million for the general fund in the first full fiscal year, with significant growth in subsequent years.”

“As we look to rebound from the economic downturn caused by the pandemic, entrepreneurs will benefit from this great opportunity to create lucrative new enterprises, the state and local governments will benefit from the added revenue and, importantly, workers will benefit from the chance to land new types of jobs and build careers,” the governor added then.

“This legislation is a major, major step forward for our state,” she continued. “Legalized adult-use cannabis is going to change the way we think about New Mexico for the better – our workforce, our economy, our future. We’re ready to break new ground. We’re ready to invest in ourselves and the limitless potential of New Mexicans. And we’re ready to get to work in making this industry a successful one.”

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Psilocybin proposal Senate Memorial 12 (SM-12) was recently signed by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham.

SM-12 is referred to as memorial legislation, which is more of an official request for research, unlike other bill proposals. “A memorial requesting the Department of Health to study the efficacy of using psilocybin mushrooms for therapeutic treatments and the establishment of a program for psilocybin mushrooms to be used for therapeutic medical treatments,” the legislation states.

The memorial legislation explains that mental illness in New Mexico is at an all-time high, and a majority of suicides in the state are committed by veterans or first responders suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder or depression. Drug overdoses are also high in the Land of Enchantment, and the state’s rate of alcohol-related deaths is “highest in the nation.”

The reasoning behind pushing SM-12 is because many reputable universities and institutions have found efficacy in the medical properties of psilocybin. The proposal concludes by requesting that the Department of Health and University of New Mexico Health Sciences work together “to study and evaluate the efficacy of psilocybin-based therapeutic treatments and the establishment of a program allowing the use of psilocybin mushrooms for therapeutic medical treatments and the necessary statutory or regulatory framework for developing such a program.”

SM-12 was sent to the Senate Health and Public Affairs Committee on Feb. 10 and unanimously with a 7-0 vote to pass. “This can help people very potentially, and so what we’re trying to do in a bipartisan way is ask the Department of Health to recognize that we want them to get going to start looking at this,” said Sen. Jeff Steinborn, one of the bill’s sponsors.

The New Mexico Senate unanimously approved SM-12 on Feb. 14 in a 37-0 vote. “It turns out that medical mushrooms, psilocybin, has proven to be medically efficacious for the use of major behavioral health issues,” Steinborn said on the day of the Senate vote. “It can help alleviate and be an alternative to major anti-depressant drugs and probably other drugs that have serious side effects and can bring real relief to New Mexicans.”

Senate Minority Whip Craig W. Brandt, who is also a sponsor of SM-12, explained that medicinal psilocybin is “not a treatment that you take on your own once a day or once a week or even once a month, but it can be a treatment that’s done about once every six months to every year, as needed.”

“And sometimes one treatment is all that’s needed to actually cure someone of a traumatic brain injury, or of PTSD,” Brandt continued. “And so this is actually a really exciting, cutting-edge technology… God seems to have provided a cure, and we just need to figure out how to use that cure.”

Previously, the last bill in New Mexico to attempt to pass psilocybin therapy was last spring with House Bill 393. It did not receive any further action after March 2023.

A steady stream of studies have been published on the topic of psilocybin in recent years. One in particular showed that psilocybin consumption not only contributed to enhanced sexual pleasure and satisfaction in participants, but that those effects lasted up to six months after consumption occurred. “It’s important to stress our work does not focus on what happens to sexual functioning while people are on psychedelics, and we are not talking about perceived ‘sexual performance,’ but it does indicate there may be a lasting positive impact on sexual functioning after their psychedelic experience, which could potentially have impacts on psychological wellbeing,” said lead author and Ph.D. student Tommaso Barba.

Psilocybin legislation in other states has continued to rise. In late January, companion bills Senate Bill 3019 and House Bill 2630 were proposed in Hawaii, which would establish therapeutic psilocybin regulations and also enact protections for patients. In Arizona, Senate Bill 1570 would legalize psilocybin treatment centers and establish regulations and training requirements for therapy center medical directors. Just last week, Senate Bill 3695 (also called the Compassionate Use and Research of Entheogens (CURE) Act was proposed in Illinois, which if passed would also legalize supervised use of psilocybin in a therapeutic setting.

Psilocybin and other substances are recognized for their medicinal value outside of the U.S. as well. Mexican Senator Alejandra Lagunes spoke out in October 2023 about suffering from depression and anxiety in her 20s. Her mindset changed after an Ayahuasca trip. “My perspective of my own life changed. My mind changed. All my negative thinking patterns shifted,” Lagunes told Vice in an interview. “It was as though there was a different light illuminating my mind and I saw things differently. I stopped taking medication. It changed my life.

Now Lagunes is proposing that psilocybin mushrooms, which are native to Mexico and have long been utilized by indigenous people, could be a huge benefit to people who are suffering from mental illness. “There isn’t a single meeting in the Senate that doesn’t mention the mental health crisis and the lack of medications to treat it,” Lagunes said. She explained her intention to propose psilocybin legalization and have it removed from Mexico’s list of scheduled drugs (currently on the same level as heroin, cocaine, and MDMA).

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In a news release on Tuesday, the Cannabis Control Division (CCD) of the New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department said that Bliss Farm and Native American Agricultural Development Company (NAADC), two cannabis farms located within miles of each other in Torrance County, New Mexico, had been ordered to “immediately stop all commercial cannabis activity” and “pay large fines.”

The two farms were cited for “exceeding plant count limits, not utilizing the state’s mandatory track and trace system and unsafe conditions, among other violations,” which resulted in the revocation of their licenses.

Additionally, Bliss Farm and NAADC must “each pay $1 million in fines for their illegal activity,” the Cannabis Control Division said. The fines will “be remitted to the State Treasurer and are to be deposited by law in the Current School Fund,” according to Tuesday’s news release.

“The illicit activity conducted at both of these farms undermines the good work that many cannabis businesses are doing across the state,” Clay Bailey, the Acting Superintendent of the New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department, said in a statement. “The excessive amount of illegal cannabis plants and other serious violations demonstrates a blatant disregard for public health and safety, and for the law.”

Todd Stevens, the director of the Cannabis Control Division, said that he hopes the sanctions serve as a warning to other would-be violators.

“Compliance within the industry is the CCD’s main priority and our office is committed to ensuring New Mexicans have access to safe cannabis products,” Stevens said. “The team worked diligently on both of these cases to determine the appropriate action for violations at a scale we hadn’t seen before. The outcomes were justified under the law based on the egregious conduct of these individuals and I hope this serves as a reminder to those who might be violating the laws and rules the state has put forth.”

Last year, local news station KOAT conducted an undercover investigation that revealed “how some cannabis dispensaries were not following the rules and were selling marijuana coming from outside New Mexico.”

The state’s cannabis law requires all cannabis programs to be grown and regulated in New Mexico.

Acting Cannabis Control Director Andrew Vallejos told KOAT last year that the state needed “to devote some more resources to enforcement.” 

This week’s announcement suggests that might be happening. 

The Cannabis Control Division uncovered the violations at Bliss Farm and NAADC during inspections carried out by compliance officers.

At Bliss Farm, those officers “discovered multiple alarming violations including numbers of cannabis plants far exceeding the allowable limits under the Cannabis Regulation Act, not utilizing the state’s mandatory track and trace system, unpermitted structures, unsanitary conditions of the production facility, pests, and more,” according to Tuesday’s news release.

“In total, Bliss Farm was cited for 17 violations. The farm’s large number of cannabis plants on site and evidence of a recent harvest without records entered into the track and trace system led the division to conclude the plants were transferred or sold illicitly,” the agency said.

The Cannabis Control Division said that it “filed a Notice of Contemplated Action against Bliss Farm on August 14, 2023,” and that the business “requested a hearing on the matter which was set for October 19, 2023.” 

“At the hearing, the farm’s attorney stated that all violations had been remedied. However, upon returning to the facility, compliance officers did not see any evidence that the violations were fixed. The hearing  officer agreed to revocation and the imposition of fines which were set by the CCD after determining the appropriate amount,” the Cannabis Control Division said.

Native American Agricultural Development Company (NAADC), meanwhile “was cited for eight violations, including exceeding the allowable number of cannabis plants under the Cannabis Regulation Act, improper security measures, no chain of custody procedures, and ill-maintained grounds with trash and pests throughout,” according to the news release.

And much like at Bliss Farm, the Cannabis Control Division’s compliance officers “also saw evidence of a recent harvest at NAADC, but no plants had ever been entered into the mandatory track and trace system,” the release said.

“The CCD filed a Notice of Contemplated Action against NAADC on October 12, 2023. The hearing on the matter was conducted on November 22, 2023,” the news release continued. “At that time, representatives from NAADC and the CCD were given the opportunity to present their cases. The hearing officer agreed with the state’s recommendation to revoke NAADC’s license and impose a fine.”

New Mexico legalized recreational cannabis for adults in 2021, when Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed the Cannabis Regulation Act into law. Legal adult-use sales began in 2022, topping $300 million in the first year of sales.

In Tuesday’s news release, the Cannabis Control Division said that it has “revoked six licenses to date and has levied more than $2.3 million in fines related to illegal activity.”

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Discover why they call New Mexico “The Land of Enchantment” with these activities that are geared more for smoker-friendly tourists seeking a magical adventure. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed legislation to legalize adult-use cannabis in New Mexico in 2021. Even though adult-use cannabis is legal in New Mexico, there are still laws in place regulating cannabis from seed to consumption.

Speaking of cannabis, the High Times Cannabis Cup New Mexico: People’s Choice Edition 2023 is scheduled to take place Dec. 9 at the Rio Rancho Events Center in Albuquerque, with a headlining act from the iconic duo, Method Man and Redman. It’s here that anyone can be the judge to determine the best weed New Mexico has to offer.

Below we list must-see attractions in New Mexico that will keep you busy during your stay in the desert dreamland, where you can see the stars in the sky and get a taste of Southwestern art.

International UFO Museum and Research Center in Roswell

Ufologists agree that Roswell is one of the top UFO hotspots on the planet. In 1947, an unidentified craft crashed into the ground in Roswell, and wreckage from a “flying disc” was recovered on the property of a local rancher. Local, typically credible papers ran with the story. The most logical first stop is the International UFO Museum and Research Center, and the tourist traps around it.

The Georgia O’Keeffe Museum 

The Georgia O’Keeffe Museum is ground zero for the artist’s finest work with a collection of 3,000 pieces including 140 oil paintings, 700 drawings, and hundreds of other works. O’Keeffe was known for her powerfully direct approach to expressing the divine role of females, and she experimented with peyote. The Georgia O’Keeffe Museum  located a few blocks northwest of the Santa Fe Plaza in downtown Santa Fe.

Gila Cliff Dwellings

Nomads used the caves above Cliff Dweller Creek as temporary shelter about 1,000 years ago. In the late 1200s, people of the agricultural Mogollon (Southern Ancestral Pueblo) culture settled there, built rooms, crafted pottery, and raised children in the cliff dwellings for one or two generations. By approximately 1300, the Mogollon had moved on from the Gila Cliff Dwellings.

The Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi

Santa Fe is a very old city, especially by American standards. In 1598, the Spanish declared Santa Fe “New Spain” initially. While most of The Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi was built in 1886, an older church used to exist on the same site, built in 1626, but was destroyed in the 1680 Pueblo Revolt. Catholic or not, this cathedral has history. 

New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science

The New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science in Albuquerque offers a fun and interactive experience. The museum’s new hall, titled Ancient Life, features hundreds of never-before-seen fossils. The Planetarium has a 55-foot Sky-Skan Definiti, full-dome theater which is great for edibles.

Four Corners Monument

Here you can stand in New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, and Colorado—simultaneously. The location is marked by a granite and brass plaque and surrounded by flags representing the tribal nations and states that share the region. At the site, you’ll find vendors selling homemade jewelry, pottery, crafts, and art. The cost to visit this monument is $5 per person.

Sandia Peak Aerial Tramway

Got a fear of heights? According to Trip Advisor, Sandia Peak Aerial Tramway is the state’s number one tourist destination. The tram takes visitors 2.7 miles and 10,378 feet up the Sandia Mountains. You can witness views of over 11,000 square miles of New Mexico from that vantage point.

Taos Pueblo

Taos is home to art galleries, hot springs, spellbinding scenery and excellent skiing opportunities. Most notably, Pueblo adobe dwellings that have lasted over 1,000 years. In Taos, visitors can choose between several museums: The Millicent Rogers Museum, Taos Art Museum at Fechin House, and the Kit Carson House & Museum.

Bandelier National Monument

With ruins that date back to 1150 CE, the Bandelier National Monument provides 33,000 acres of beautiful landscape, showing off New Mexico’s incredible natural wilderness. This includes homes carved into soft rock. You can see historical relics from the ancestral Pueblo tribes who built structures in the area for thousands of years.

Petroglyph National Monument

Petroglyph National Monument is home to nearly 25,000 petroglyphs, 90% of which are believed to have been drawn by ancient Pueblo people. Many of the meanings behind the petroglyphs is unknown. Drivers will have to pay $1 per vehicle on weekdays and $2 on weekends. 

White Sands National Park

Forget the Sahara Desert: White Sands National Park is a stunning dune-filled region located within the Tularosa Basin and it happens to be home to the earth’s largest gypsum dune field. More than 73,000 acres of white sand stretch out all the way to the horizon. 

Carlsbad Caverns National Park

Carlsbad Caverns National Park is home to over 100 limestone caves. You can choose between two underground trails, The Big Room Trail and the Natural Entrance Trail. The former is the most popular route, taking visitors through one of the largest cave chambers in North America. You can witness 400,000 Brazilian free-tailed bats exit the cave in search of food each evening. 

Chaco Culture National Historical Park

Yet another Pueblo site, Chaco Culture National Historical Park was given its name in 2013 . No permanent outdoor lighting exists in order to protect nocturnal wildlife and the natural rhythms of humans and plants that depend on an unaltered night sky. Within the park, visitors can see evidence of the huge structures built by the Ancestral Pueblo people between 850 and 1250 AD.

High Times Cannabis Cup New Mexico: People’s Choice Edition 2023

Or you can attend the High Times Cannabis Cup New Mexico: People’s Choice Edition 2023.

A live awards show is scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 9 at the Rio Rancho Events Center in Albuquerque. The event will be headlined by Method Man and Redman, who will be joined by Devin the Dude, Paul Wall, Haizi Haze, and Lil’ Flip. New Mexico’s own will judge the cannabis and products that will prove their worth.

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New Mexico’s recreational cannabis industry is barely six months old, but regulators say there are already more than two dozen businesses that are not in compliance with state rules.

Local television station KRQE reported last week that the state’s Cannabis Control Division has conducted 100 inspections since adult-use pot sales kicked off in April, finding that “31 businesses are not in compliance.”

The station reported that the division’s inspectors “go out with a checklist and look for any issues,” and that the “list includes control of waste, fire safety, and making sure businesses have security measures.”

“For retailers, they don’t typically have as extensive of a checklist because they’re not growing,” New Mexico Cannabis Control Division Director Andrew Vallejos told KRQE.

According to the station, the state “has not cited any recreational marijuana licenses since it became legal,” and regulators are not taking a punitive approach to the inspections.

“One of the grounds for suspension; is if businesses don’t enter their product in the state’s seed to sale software,” KRQE reported. “Plants are tracked whether they come from New Mexico or out of the state. However, even if businesses slip up on rules, the goal is to get them back on track.”

But per the station, New Mexico officials are “looking to hire two more compliance officers,” given that the “cannabis control division currently has eight compliance officers to inspect 478 businesses that have a recreational marijuana license.”

New Mexico legalized recreational pot for adults in 2021, when Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed a bill into law.

“The legalization of adult-use cannabis paves the way for the creation of a new economic driver in our state with the promise of creating thousands of good paying jobs for years to come,” Lujan Grisham said in a statement at the time. “We are going to increase consumer safety by creating a bona fide industry. We’re going to start righting past wrongs of this country’s failed War on Drugs. And we’re going to break new ground in an industry that may well transform New Mexico’s economic future for the better.”

Adult-use weed sales officially began on April 1 of this year, with sales eclipsing $3 million on the opening weekend.

In July, adult-use cannabis sales in New Mexico exceeded $40 million, which was a new record for the state’s fledgling recreational pot market.

“These numbers show that the impressive sales generated in the first month of legalized recreational cannabis sales were no fluke – and this is only the beginning,” Lujan Grisham said in a statement at the time. “We’ve established a new industry that is already generating millions of dollars in local and state revenue and will continue to generate millions more in economic activity across the state, creating thousands of jobs for New Mexicans in communities both small and large.”

When she signed the legalization bill into law back in 2021, Lujan Grisham framed the measure as a potential economic boon for a state that, like many others, was still reeling from the COVID-19 pandemic.

“As we look to rebound from the economic downturn caused by the pandemic, entrepreneurs will benefit from this great opportunity to create lucrative new enterprises, the state and local governments will benefit from the added revenue and, importantly, workers will benefit from the chance to land new types of jobs and build careers,” Lujan Grisham said in a statement.

“This legislation is a major, major step forward for our state,” the governor continued. “Legalized adult-use cannabis is going to change the way we think about New Mexico for the better — our workforce, our economy, our future. We’re ready to break new ground. We’re ready to invest in ourselves and the limitless potential of New Mexicans. And we’re ready to get to work in making this industry a successful one.”

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