Recreational marijuana usage has been legalized in some form in 26 states and the District of Columbia, and three more are set to join this year, but Canada would be the first Group of Seven country to do so nationally.
The legislation would set the minimum legal age for use and purchase at 18, though provinces would be able to raise the age.
On April 13, the Canadian government unveiled a bill to legalize cannabis by July 1, 2018.
But that won't stop Americans from using marijuana across the border if and when the drug becomes legal.
Ballot measures approved by voters past year in California, Maine and the city of Denver would allow either on-site pot consumption or "social use" clubs, but regulations for how those clubs would work haven't been settled. Canada legalized marijuana for selected medicinal uses in 2001.
"Professional companies must be allowed to explain to consumers why our products are superior to those offered by their illegal competitors", said Brendan Kennedy, CEO of Privateer Holdings, which says it is the first private equity firm to invest exclusively in legal cannabis. The marijuana task force led by former Liberal justice minister Anne McLellan had acknowledged provinces and territories would likely harmonize it with the age limit they now have in place for alcohol and tobacco. In 2015, use among youth aged 15 to 19 was 21 per cent, while use among young adults aged 20 to 24 was 30 per cent.
With two championship games
The compromise was reached days after the NCAA said the state was down to its final days to get something done about the law. Creighton will host the first and second rounds of the Division I men's basketball tournament March 19-22, 2020.
Canadians would also be allowed to grow up to four plants at home for personal use. While the capital will regulate the production and ensure the safety of the country's marijuana, the Canadian province will decide how the drugs will be distributed and sold.
The market action was likely a "sell the news" reaction as the legislation was largely in line with what an official task force recommended a year ago, said Aaron Salz, founder of Stoic Advisory. "In any jurisdiction where a law has passed that a citizen deems unfair, we have a Charter of Rights and Freedoms", she said.
"We are reviewing the proposed legislation and attempting to understand the impacts around policing, which will include training, enforcement, implications of impaired operation by drug and some implications that likely haven't even been contemplated yet", Rodd said.
With some of those key elements still need to be worked out, Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale said the move to legalize marijuana will be done expeditiously but carefully. Selling the drug to a minor will be a new criminal offence under the federal liberal government's proposed new legal-pot regime.
"This is a very important day, I've spent most of my adult life keeping children and communities safe", said MP Bill Blair during a press conference shortly after the legislation was presented to Parliament.
Down in the U.S., however, laws for recreational cannabis in the USA are still a work in progress. Goodale said Canadian tourists "should never lie" to border guards and suggested he had raised the issue with US officials.
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