CANNABIS PRODUCT PACKAGING REGULATIONS

HB0294

HOUSE BILL 294

57th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2026

INTRODUCED BY

Doreen Y. Gallegos
and
Elizabeth "Liz" Stefanics

and
Joshua N. Hernandez
and
Janelle Anyanonu
and
Art De La Cruz

AN ACT

RELATING TO CANNABIS PRODUCTS; REGULATING THE USE OF COLORS,
MATERIALS AND DESIGN ELEMENTS ON PACKAGING AND LABELING OF
CANNABIS PRODUCTS THAT ARE SIMILAR TO PRODUCTS SOLD TO MINORS
OR THAT COULD BE REASONABLY APPEALING TO MINORS OR THAT ARE
COMMONLY ASSOCIATED WITH ENTERTAINMENT MEDIA; PROVIDING THAT
THE USE OF ARTIFICIAL COLOR ADDITIVES NOT EXPRESSLY APPROVED BY
THE CANNABIS CONTROL DIVISION OF THE REGULATION AND LICENSING
DEPARTMENT RENDERS A CANNABIS PRODUCT ADULTERATED; PRESCRIBING
A PENALTY.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

SECTION 1.
Section 26-2C-2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2021
(1st S.S.), Chapter 4, Section 2, as amended) is amended to
read:

"26-2C-2. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Cannabis
Regulation Act:

A. "artificial color additive" means a synthetic
food dye or other dye, pigment or substance not derived from
natural food sources that is added to a cannabis product to
impart color;

[
A.
]
B.
"cannabis":

(1) means all parts of the plant genus

Cannabis
containing a delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol
concentration of more than three-tenths percent on a dry weight
basis, whether growing or not; the seeds of the plant; the
resin extracted from any part of the plant; and every compound,
manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture or preparation of the
plant, its seeds or its resin; and

(2) does not include:

(a) the mature stalks of the plant;
fiber produced from the stalks; oil or cake made from the seeds
of the plant; any other compound, manufacture, salt,
derivative, mixture or preparation of the mature stalks, fiber,
oil or cake; or the sterilized seed of the plant that is
incapable of germination; or

(b) the weight of any other ingredient
combined with cannabis to prepare topical or oral
administrations, food, drink or other product;

[
B.
]
C.
"cannabis consumption area" means an area
of a licensed premises where cannabis products may be served
and consumed;

[
C.
]
D.
"cannabis courier" means a person that
transports commercial or medical cannabis products to
consumers;

[
D.
]
E.
"cannabis establishment" means:

(1) a cannabis testing laboratory;

(2) a cannabis manufacturer;

(3) a cannabis producer;

(4) a cannabis retailer;

(5) a cannabis research laboratory;

(6) a vertically integrated cannabis
establishment;

(7) a cannabis producer microbusiness;

(8) an integrated cannabis microbusiness; or

(9) a cannabis consumption area;

[
E.
]
F.
"cannabis extract":

(1) means a product obtained by separating
resins, tetrahydrocannabinols or other substances from cannabis
by extraction methods approved by the division; and

(2) does not include the weight of any other
ingredient combined with cannabis extract to prepare topical or
oral administrations, food, drink or another product;

[
F.
]
G.
"cannabis flowers" means only the flowers
of a cannabis plant;

[
G.
]
H.
"cannabis manufacturer" means a person
that:

(1) manufactures cannabis products;

(2) packages cannabis products for resale; or

(3) purchases, acquires, sells or transports
wholesale cannabis products to other cannabis establishments;

[
H.
]
I.
"cannabis producer" means a person that:

(1) cultivates cannabis plants;

(2) transports unprocessed cannabis only to
other cannabis establishments; or

(3) sells cannabis wholesale;

[
I.
]
J.
"cannabis producer microbusiness" means a
cannabis producer at a single licensed premises that possesses
no more than two hundred total mature cannabis plants at any
one time;

[
J.
]
K.
"cannabis product" means a product that is
or that contains cannabis or cannabis extract,

including edible
or topical products that may also contain other ingredients;

[
K.
]
L.
"cannabis research laboratory" means a
facility that produces or possesses cannabis products and all
parts of the plant genus
Cannabis
for the purpose of studying
cannabis cultivation, characteristics or uses;

[
L.
]
M.
"cannabis retailer" means a person that
sells cannabis products to consumers;

[
M.
]
N.
"cannabis testing laboratory" means a
facility that samples, collects and tests cannabis products and
transports cannabis products for the purpose of testing;

O. "cartoon" means any drawing, illustration, image
or animation that depicts exaggerated, stylized or
anthropomorphic features, including animals, creatures or
objects with human characteristics, or any other visual device
that is designed in a manner that is reasonably appealing to
minors, as determined by the division;

[
N.
]
P.
"commercial cannabis activity":

(1) means the cultivation, production,
possession, manufacture, storage, testing, researching,
packaging and labeling, transportation, couriering, purchase
for resale, sale or consignment of cannabis products; and

(2) does not include activities related only
to the medical cannabis program or to the personal cultivation
or use of cannabis products;

[
O.
]
Q.
"consumer" means a person twenty-one years
of age or older who legally purchases, acquires, owns,
possesses or uses a commercial cannabis product not for resale
or a person who holds a medical cannabis program registry
identification card issued by the department of health or is a
reciprocal participant;

[
P.
]
R.
"contaminant" means pesticides and other
foreign material, such as hair, insects or other similar
adulterants, in harvested cannabis;

[
Q.
]
S.
"controlling person":

(1) means a person that controls a financial
or voting interest of ten percent or more of, or an officer or
board member of, a cannabis establishment; and

(2) does not include a bank or licensed
lending institution;

[
R.
]
T.
"cultivation" means any activity involving
the planting, growing, harvesting, drying, curing, grading or
trimming of cannabis;

[
S.
]
U.
"department" means the regulation and
licensing department;

[
T.
]
V.
"director" means the director of the
division;

[
U.
]
W.
"division" means the cannabis control
division of the department;

[
V.
]
X.
"dry weight basis", when used in the
context of regulation of commercial cannabis activity, means a
process by which delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol concentration is
measured relative to the aggregate weight of all parts of the
plant genus
Cannabis
, whether growing or not, including the
leaves of the plant, the flowers and buds of the plant, the
seeds of the plant, the resin of the plant and the stalks of
the plant at the point of harvest by a licensee and with no
moisture added to the harvested plant;

[
W.
]
Y.
"facility" means a building, space or
grounds licensed for the production, storage, testing,
manufacturing, distribution, sale or consumption of cannabis
products;

[
X.
]
Z.
"financial consideration" means value that
is given or received, directly or indirectly, through sales,
barter, trade, fees, charges, dues, contributions or donations;

[
Y.
]
AA.
"homegrown" or "homemade" means grown or
made for purposes that are not for resale;

[
Z.
]
BB.
"illegal cannabis product" means a
cannabis product that is:

(1) produced or manufactured outside New
Mexico;

(2) produced, manufactured, distributed or
sold in New Mexico by a person not licensed to produce,
manufacture, distribute or sell the cannabis product; or

(3) produced, manufactured, distributed or
sold by a person acting outside the limits of the person's
license; provided that "illegal cannabis product" does not
include homegrown or homemade cannabis products that comply
with the provisions of the Cannabis Regulation Act;

[
AA.
]
CC.
"immature cannabis plant" means a
cannabis plant that has no observable flowers or buds;

[
BB.
]
DD.
"industry standards" means the prevailing
customary standards of business practice in the cannabis
industry in jurisdictions within the United States;

[
CC.
]
EE.
"integrated cannabis microbusiness" means
a person that is licensed to conduct one or more of the
following:

(1) production of cannabis at a single
licensed premises; provided that the person shall not possess
more than two hundred total mature cannabis plants at any one
time;

(2) manufacture of cannabis products at a
single licensed premises;

(3) sales and transportation of cannabis
products produced or manufactured by that person or another
cannabis producer microbusiness or integrated cannabis
microbusiness;

(4) operation of only one retail
establishment; and

(5) couriering of cannabis products to
consumers;

[
DD.
]
FF.
"licensed premises" means a location that
includes:

(1) all enclosed public and private areas at
the location that are used in the business and includes
cannabis consumption areas, offices, kitchens, restrooms and
storerooms;

(2) all areas outside of a building that are
specifically included in the license;

(3) all areas of a standalone cannabis
consumption area, including retail and other areas, whether in
enclosed or outside spaces, and including private or members-only clubs where cannabis products are available for sale or
consumption; and

(4) with respect to a location that is
specifically licensed for the production of cannabis outside of
a building, the amount of land that the licensee owns, leases
or has a right to occupy that is identified in the application
for licensure for cultivation of cannabis; provided that the
licensed premises may be decreased but shall not be increased
without permission of the division;

[
EE.
]
GG.
"local jurisdiction" means a
municipality, including a home rule municipality, or county;

[
FF.
]
HH.
"manufacture" means to compound, blend,
extract, infuse, package and label or otherwise prepare a
cannabis product;

[
GG.
]
II.
"medical cannabis" means cannabis
products used by a qualified patient or reciprocal participant
in accordance with the Lynn and Erin Compassionate Use Act;

[
HH.
]
JJ.
"medical cannabis program" means the
program created pursuant to the Lynn and Erin Compassionate Use
Act;

[
II.
]
KK.
"medical cannabis registry" means the
system by which the department of health approves or denies
applications and issues and renews registry identification
cards for qualified patients and primary caregivers;

[
JJ.
]
LL.
"primary caregiver" means a resident of
New Mexico who is at least eighteen years of age and who is
responsible for managing the well-being of a qualified patient
with respect to the medical use of cannabis pursuant to the
Lynn and Erin Compassionate Use Act;

[
KK.
]
MM.
"public space" means any place to which
the general public has access;

[
LL.
]
NN.
"qualified patient" means a resident of
New Mexico who holds a registry identification card pursuant to
the Lynn and Erin Compassionate Use Act;

[
MM.
]
OO.
"reciprocal participant" means a person
who is not a resident of New Mexico and who holds proof of
enrollment by a governmental regulatory authority to
participate in the medical cannabis program of another state of
the United States, the District of Columbia or a territory or
commonwealth of the United States in which the person resides
or a person who holds proof of enrollment by a governmental
regulatory authority of a New Mexico Indian nation, tribe or
pueblo to participate in its medical cannabis program;

[
NN.
]
PP.
"residence" or "household" means a
housing unit and includes any place in or around the housing
unit that is not a public space and at which an occupant of the
housing unit produces, manufactures, keeps or stores homegrown
or homemade cannabis products or stores legally purchased
cannabis;

[
OO.
]
QQ.
"retail establishment" means a location
at which cannabis products are sold directly to consumers;

[
PP.
]
RR.
"superintendent" means the superintendent
of regulation and licensing;

[
QQ.
]
SS.
"unprocessed" means unaltered from an
original, raw or natural state; and

[
RR.
]
TT.
"vertically integrated cannabis
establishment" means a person that is authorized to act as one
or more of the following:

(1) a cannabis courier;

(2) a cannabis manufacturer;

(3) a cannabis producer; and

(4) a cannabis retailer."

SECTION 2.
Section 26-2C-17 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2021
(1st S.S.), Chapter 4, Section 17, as amended) is amended to
read:

"26-2C-17. CANNABIS PRODUCTS--PACKAGING AND LABELING--DIVISION RULEMAKING.--

A. Cannabis or cannabis extract included in a
cannabis product that is manufactured in compliance with
applicable law is not considered to be an adulterant under
state law.

B. The division shall promulgate rules consistent
with industry standards for cannabis products that establish
[
labeling and
] packaging
and labeling
requirements [
including
that
].

C. Packaging requirements shall include that
:

(1) packages shall be resealable and child-resistant;

(2) cannabis product packaging shall be
limited to the use of black and white, including packaging
materials, text, backgrounds, logos, symbols and design
elements; provided that color may be used only as required or
approved by the division for:

(a) division-mandated warning statements
or safety symbols;

(b) a division-approved universal
cannabis symbol or other standardized regulatory marks; and

(c) division-approved licensee logos
that are not designed in a manner that is reasonably appealing
to minors;

(3) fonts used on cannabis packaging shall be
plain, sans-serif and not stylized in a manner that is
reasonably appealing to minors;

(4) cannabis product packaging shall not
include:

(a) cartoons;

(b) imagery, color schemes or branding
elements that mimic or resemble non-cannabis products commonly
marketed to minors;

(c) holographic, metallic, neon,
fluorescent or other reflective or visually dynamic effects; or

(d) any visual presentation determined
by the division to be reasonably appealing to minors;

(5) packaging shall not be shaped or
constructed in a manner that imitates or resembles:

(a) candy, snack food or soft drink
packaging commonly marketed to minors;

(b) toy containers, novelty items or
collectible packaging; or

(c) products commonly associated with
minors' products or entertainment media; and

(6) packages containing edible cannabis
products shall be opaque
.

[
(2) packages and
]
D.
Labels shall:

(1)
not be designed to be appealing to a
[
child
]
minor
and shall not mimic the brand, design, name, logo
or colorway of a non-cannabis consumer product marketed to
[
children
]
minors
;

[
(3) packages and labels shall
]
(2)
not use
cartoons or symbols or images, including images of celebrities
or celebrity likenesses, that are commonly used to market to
[
children;

(4) packages containing edible cannabis products
shall be opaque
]
minors
; and

[
(5)
]
(3)
labels shall include:

(a) for a package containing only
cannabis leaf or flower, the net weight of cannabis in the
package;

(b) identification of the licensee or
licensees that produced or manufactured the cannabis product,
the date on which the cannabis was harvested, the type of
cannabis product and the date on which the cannabis product was
manufactured and packaged;

(c) potency and pesticide use;

(d) a list of pharmacologically active
ingredients;

(e) for cannabis products containing
non-cannabis ingredients, a list of all ingredients and a
disclosure of nutritional information for the product or
cannabis extract disclosed in the same manner required under
federal law for nutritional labeling for food for human
consumption;

(f) a warning if nuts or other known
allergens are used in the item or in its manufacture;

(g) a logo designed by the division that
is distinctive in design, color, size and location such that
the logo notifies a reasonable person that the package contains
cannabis;

(h) a warning of possible adverse
effects of consumption and the New Mexico poison and drug
information center phone number;

(i) an expiration date; and

(j) other information as required by
rules promulgated in accordance with the Cannabis Regulation
Act."

SECTION 3.
Section 26-2C-18.1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2024,
Chapter 38, Section 11) is amended to read:

"26-2C-18.1. WHEN CANNABIS PRODUCT DEEMED ADULTERATED.--A
cannabis product is deemed to be adulterated if:

A. it bears or contains mold, mildew or other
deleterious or poisonous substance that may render it injurious
to health;

B. it consists in whole or in part of a diseased,
contaminated, filthy, impure or infested ingredient or putrid
or decomposed substance or if it is otherwise unfit for
consumption;

C. it has been produced, prepared, packed or held
under unsanitary conditions so that it may have been
contaminated with filth or rendered diseased, unwholesome or
injurious to health;

D. its container is composed in whole or in part of
a poisonous or deleterious substance that may render the
contents injurious to health;

E. a valuable constituent has been, in whole or in
part, omitted or abstracted from the cannabis product;

F. a substance has been substituted in whole or in
part that is contrary to the ingredient list on the package
unless a notification of substitution is adhered to the
packaging;

G. damage or inferiority has been concealed in any
manner;

H. a substance has been added so as to increase the
cannabis product's bulk or weight, reduce its quality or
strength or make it appear better or of greater value than it
is; [
or
]

I. it contains an artificial color additive that
has not been expressly approved by the division; or

[
I.
]
J.
the cannabis product is a confectionery, it
contains alcohol or other non-nutritive article or substance,
[
except harmless coloring
] flavoring, natural gum, pectin or
resinous glaze not in excess of four-tenths of one percent;
provided that a confectionary may include less than two and
one-fourth percent by weight of alcohol derived solely from the
use of flavoring extracts or [
to
] any chewing gum by reason of
its containing harmless non-nutritive masticatory substances."

SECTION 4.
A new section of the Cannabis Regulation Act
is enacted to read:

"[
NEW MATERIAL
] ARTIFICIAL COLOR ADDITIVES AND PACKAGING
AND LABELING MATERIALS--VIOLATIONS--PENALTY.--It is a violation
of the Cannabis Regulation Act for a licensee to manufacture,
distribute, sell or offer for sale any cannabis product that is
adulterated by the use of artificial color additives or that
does not comply with packaging and labeling requirements.
Violations may be punishable as provided in Section 26-2C-8
NMSA 1978. A licensee is liable for offering or selling
noncompliant cannabis products regardless of whether the
product was manufactured by a third party."

SECTION 5.
EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the
provisions of this act is January 1, 2027.

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