Hartford – Connecticut could soon have stricter criminal penalties for possessing “fake pot.”

 The state Senate on Monday approved its second marijuana bill in as many days, voting 36-0 to designate five synthetic versions of marijuana and an herb called Salvia divinorum as controlled substances to be regulated by the Department of Consumer Protection.

The synthetic products mimic the effects of the traditional marijuana plant but were sold in stores and considered legal before the federal government in March classified its chemicals as Schedule I controlled substances.

 The bill now goes to the state House where it joins a bill the Senate passed Saturday that would decriminalize marijuana possession of a half ounce or less. If that bill passes, first-time possession would be a $150 fine and a second offense would be between $200 and $500 with required enrollment in a drug education program.

Eric Coleman, D-Bloomfield, acknowledged that if both bills become law, an individual would face a criminal record in Connecticut if caught with a small amount of synthetic marijuana once bought in a store, but not for a similar amount of traditional marijuana that he or she obtained in a back alley.

Senate Minority Leader John McKinney, R-Fairfield, also pointed out the peculiarity during floor debate late Monday night. He was among the 18 senators who voted against marijuana decriminalization on Saturday. Lt. Gov. Nancy Wyman broke the 18-18 tie.

“For the life of me, I don’t know how I am going to explain to my constituents that we have one penalty for the fake pot but another for the real pot,” McKinney said.

Under current law, those possessing less than 4 ounces of marijuana can face punishment of up to a year in prison and a $1,000 fine.  However, Coleman said that jail is in practice extremely rare for first-time offenders, and the typical fine is now about $200.

Sen. Andrea Stillman, D-Waterford, spoke in favor of the bill that would make synthetic marijuana a controlled substance.

She noted how officers at the Naval Submarine Base in Groton have warned of the dangerous health effects of using the synthetic drug and had banned sailors from entering certain convenience stores where the products were once legally sold under names such as Spice and K2.

Navy officials said in March that five to 10 people at the Groton base and submarine school were caught using or possessing synthetic marijuana products in the past year, and all had to leave the service.