Author: Chris Roberts

[ad_1] New York regulators on Monday approved settlement agreements in two lawsuits that have contributed to the tortuous rollout of legal adult-use cannabis sales in the state. Details of Monday’s approvals were not immediately available. The Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) did not immediately respond to an MJBizDaily request for comment. The settlements – reached earlier this month – must now be approved by a state judge before an injunction blocking the issuance of adult-use licenses in New York is lifted. During an emergency Cannabis Control Board meeting Monday, board members voted unanimously to approve settlement agreements in two lawsuits:…

[ad_1] Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer says he is still wrangling Republican support for a much-awaited marijuana banking reform bill. Schumer has spent significant political capital trying to pass the SAFER Banking Act. If passed into law, the SAFER Banking Act would bar federal regulators from penalizing financial institutions for offering basic services such as bank accounts, payroll services and credit-card transaction processing to state-legal marijuana businesses. The bill did receive two Senate hearings this year, including passage during a much-awaited markup hearing in September. But before Schumer calls the bill to a floor vote, he needs support from…

[ad_1] The mother of a Trulieve Cannabis Corp. cultivation employee who died in January 2022 after collapsing at work filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the company, according to court records. Lorna McMurrey, 27, died Jan. 7, 2022, after experiencing breathing problems while working at the Florida-based multistate operator’s cultivation operation in Holyoke, Massachusetts. A report published Nov. 17 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that McMurrey died from “occupational asthma.” In a complaint filed Monday in Hampden County Superior Court in Massachusetts, McMurrey’s mother, Laura Bruneau, claimed that her daughter’s “tragic and preventable death” was the…

[ad_1] State and federal medical investigators identified work-related “occupational asthma” as the cause of the January 2022 death of a marijuana cultivation worker in Massachusetts. The death – the first of its kind on record in the U.S. cannabis industry – “illustrates missed opportunities for prevention,” according to an analysis published in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s “Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report” for Nov. 17. The CDC report “represents findings of an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) inspection, which included a worksite exposure assessment, coworker and next-of-kin interviews, medical record reviews, and collaboration with the Massachusetts Department…

[ad_1] The emergency funding bill that President Joe Biden signed into law on Thursday to avoid a government shutdown also includes an extension of the Farm Bill until September 2024, Reuters and other news agencies reported. That means Congress now will have more time to craft a new Farm Bill that advocates hope will address the burgeoning national market in hemp-derived cannabinoids, including controversial delta-8 THC. According to Reuters, the stopgap bill provides “funding through next September for farm programs and food assistance.” The farm bill is part of a major spending package that Congress renews every five years. The previous…

[ad_1] A licensed medical marijuana cultivator in Arkansas avoided a license suspension on appeal but still must pay a fine. Hot Springs-based Leafology faced a 15-day license suspension and $15,500 fine after Arkansas’ Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) accused the grower in October of failing to control cannabis odors and neglecting to maintain proper video surveillance and track-and-trace records. However, during an appeals hearing Wednesday, the ABC chose to levy the fine against Leafology but not the license suspension, Little Rock TV station KATV reported. Before the hearing, the company – one of eight licensed MMJ growers in the state –…

[ad_1] A Mississippi medical marijuana dispensary owner sued state agencies in federal court in a bid to overturn the strictest ban on cannabis advertising in the United States. MMJ sales in Mississippi began earlier this year, but state regulators have “prohibited dispensaries from advertising and marketing entirely,” including listing products for sale on websites, attorneys for Clarence Cocroft II claimed in court filings. “If I pay taxes in this business, which I do, I should be able to advertise,” Cocroft, who operates Tru Source Medical Cannabis in Olive Branch, said at a Tuesday news conference, according to the Associated Press.…

[ad_1] Qualified cannabis entrepreneurs seeking one of Maryland’s first 179 adult-use marijuana business licenses have until Dec. 12 to apply. The Maryland Cannabis Administration began accepting applications Monday. In its first round, the state will issue: 75 “standard dispensary” licenses. 16 “standard grower’” permits. 32 “standard processor” licenses. 24 “micro grower” permits. 24 “micro processor licenses. Eight “micro dispensary” permits. Successful applicants must have already completed a social equity verification process that’s currently closed, though the state has yet to process all the submissions. Businesses need at least 65% ownership held by a verified social equity applicant, according to the…

[ad_1] A lobby representing cannabis business owners in Maine is working with a national labor union to represent marijuana interests at the state capitol, organizers told MJBizDaily. The Maine Cannabis Union – comprised of former members of the Maine Cannabis Coalition, an industry association formed in 2020 – is designed to leverage resources provided by the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM). The IAM is known in Maine for organizing lobster fishers as well as shipyard employees at Bath Iron Works, a major U.S. Navy contractor that’s also the state’s fourth-largest employer. But pressuring state lawmakers for friendly…

[ad_1] (This story is part of the cover package in the November-December issue of MJBizMagazine.) From zealous drug warrior to out-of-touch elder statesman to the regulated marijuana industry’s savior apparent. President Joe Biden’s long arc in public life might have more twists ahead. One year after setting into motion the most significant transformation in federal marijuana policy since 1970, the same politician whose views as a U.S. senator escalated the drug war to its apex has now, as president, laid the cornerstone for a stable and lasting legal marijuana industry. “Love him or hate him,” said Andrew Kline, Denver-based senior…

[ad_1] Virginia’s controversial new regulations for hemp-derived products – including an outright ban on intoxicating products containing delta-8 THC – will remain in place for now after a federal judge rejected an initial plea from hemp companies to intervene. Two hemp businesses and a consumer filed suit in federal court in September challenging rules governing hemp-derived products signed into law by Gov. Glenn Youngkin. The rules went into effect July 1. Virginia’s hemp regulations now include a 0.3% THC limit for hemp-derived products, limits on total THC as well as a CBD-THC ratio of at least 25-to-1. That renders nearly…

[ad_1] One of cannabis reform’s staunchest advocates in Congress plans to retire. Democratic U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer, who has represented Portland, Oregon, and local environs in the House of Representatives since 1996, said this week he will not seek reelection next year. “It is a difficult decision. Particularly after the amazing success of the last several years,” Blumenauer, 75, said in a late Monday news release. “But simply said, it is time to continue my life’s mission without the burden of day-to-day politics.” Blumenauer’s retirement was first reported by Willamette Week. A former Portland City Council member and bicycle advocate…