Author: A.J. Herrington

[ad_1] A new law in Oklahoma gives the state’s cannabis regulators the authority to launch a medical marijuana dispensary secret shopper program. The legislation, which was passed by state legislators and signed into law in 2022, tasks the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority (OMMA) with inspecting at least 50 licensed medical marijuana retailers for violations of the state’s regulations each year. The new law, House Bill 3971 (HB 3971), went into effect this week along with several other bills designed to rein in control of Oklahoma’s burgeoning medical cannabis industry. Medical marijuana was legalized in the Sooner State in 2018 with…

[ad_1] Applicants for employment in Washington gained new protections on Monday as a new law barring discrimination based on a worker’s off-duty cannabis use went into effect throughout the state. The legislation, Senate Bill 5123, was signed into law by Democratic Governor Jay Inslee in May 2023 after being passed by state lawmakers three weeks earlier. Under the new law, employers in Washington are barred from taking action against newly hired workers for using cannabis off the job and away from the workplace. The prohibition also applies to new employees who have failed an employer-required drug screening for non-psychoactive cannabis…

[ad_1] Hemp growers and retailers in Tennessee say that newly proposed regulations threaten the viability of businesses in the industry and vow to challenge the rules before they go into effect, according to media reports. In April, the Tennessee General Assembly passed legislation to regulate and tax hemp products grown, manufactured and sold in the state. Under the bill, the Tennessee Department of Agriculture is tasked with drafting rules to govern the industry, including regulations for product testing, compliance and enforcement. Earlier this month, the Agriculture Department released a draft of proposed new regulations for the hemp industry, which are…

[ad_1] A new law went into effect in Nevada on January 1 making several changes to the state’s cannabis laws, including a provision that doubles the state’s limit on weed possession. The measure, Senate Bill 277, was passed by Nevada lawmakers this spring before being signed into law by Republican Governor Joe Lombardo on June 14. Senate Bill 277 makes several significant changes to Nevada’s cannabis regulations. In 2001, the state legalized medical marijuana, followed by the legalization of adult-use cannabis with the passage of Question 2, a 2016 ballot measure that legalized recreational marijuana in the state for adults…

[ad_1] California workers who use cannabis will gain new employment protections under two laws that go into effect beginning on January 1. Under legislation passed by the California legislature last year, employers will be barred from discriminating against workers who test positive for cannabis in some drug screenings, while a separate measure passed in 2023 prohibits employers from asking employees or job candidates about their off-duty use of marijuana. Under Assembly Bill 2188 (AB 2188), which was signed into law by California Governor Gavin Newsom in 2022, employers will no longer be able to fire or discipline employees who test…

[ad_1] The supporters of a proposed citizen’s initiative that would allow Florida medical marijuana patients to cultivate cannabis at home have ended their efforts to place the measure on the ballot for the 2024 general election. The home cultivation campaign withdrew its initiative petition late last month after failing to collect enough signatures to qualify for the ballot. Cannabis activist Moriah Barnhart founded the group Wise and Free in December 2022 to put the medical marijuana home cultivation initiative on the ballot. But she says that the process has been made more difficult by new restrictions and fees for proposed…

[ad_1] A new report projects that the global recreational marijuana market will nearly double over the next four years, with legal sales of adult-use cannabis climbing to almost $50 billion per year by 2027. The report, from U.K.-based cannabis data, media and tech company Prohibition Partners, credits global momentum in cannabis reform and the opening of new recreational cannabis markets in Europe over the next three years as the prime drivers of the industry’s worldwide growth. “North America remains the global powerhouse of legal cannabis, with strong state-by-state growth, promising regulatory reform and international isolationism in the US, while Canada’s…

[ad_1] The Minnesota Department of Health has issued a bulletin warning consumers that retailers are selling unregulated and illegal cannabis products that exceed the state’s limit for THC. Minnesota legalized recreational marijuana earlier this year, but state-licensed cannabis dispensaries are not expected to open for at least a year, perhaps not until early 2025. In its bulletin, the health department noted that the agency inspected 167 retailers offering hemp-derived cannabinoid products between August and November and found that more than one in three (39%) of the shops were selling illegal high-potency products. Under Minnesota law, hemp edibles and beverages sold…

[ad_1] The Southeast Asian nation of Myanmar is now the world’s largest producer of opium, according to a recent report from the United Nations. Myanmar’s new dominance in the international opium market follows the decline of production of the drug in Afghanistan, which had previously been the largest producer of the crop worldwide. Afghanistan’s drop in production follows a ban on opium farming issued by the ruling Taliban in 2022, although that year’s harvest was exempt from the ban. Since then, the South-Central Asian nation has seen a 95% decline in opium cultivation. The Taliban retook control of Afghanistan in…

[ad_1] Fentanyl caused a majority of fatal overdoses in Los Angeles County for the first time last year, with nearly 60% of the area’s overdose deaths attributed to the increasingly popular opioid. Fentanyl replaced methamphetamine as the county’s most common drug cited as the cause of accidental drug or alcohol overdose deaths, according to a new report from the L.A. County Department of Public Health. “It’s absolutely heartbreaking,” Amanda Cowan, executive director of Community Health Project Los Angeles, told the Los Angeles Times, adding, “These communities are just being decimated.” In 2022, Los Angeles County reported 3,220 accidental overdoses. Of…

[ad_1] A company focused on developing novel treatments for mental health this week announced that it has submitted an application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration seeking the approval of MDMA-assisted therapy. The application, which was submitted by MAPS Public Benefit Corporation (MAPS PBC) after more than three decades of clinical research into the potential use of MDMA-assisted therapy for PTSD, represents a significant achievement in the effort to develop safe and effective mental health therapies utilizing psychedelic drugs. In 2017, the FDA granted Breakthrough Therapy designation for psychotherapy utilizing MDMA, the psychedelic drug commonly known as Ecstasy, indicating…

[ad_1] Sales of cannabis in Arizona have exceeded $1 billion this year, according to data from the state Department of Revenue. Total marijuana sales eclipsed the billion-dollar mark in September, marking the third straight year the state’s weed sales have reached the seven-digit milestone.  So far this year, Arizona’s sales of adult-use cannabis have totaled $797 million, while medical marijuana sales reached $267 million, bringing the total for 2023 through September to $1.1 billion. The state’s overall cannabis volume since recreational marijuana sales began in January 2021 has now reached $4 billion, with sales of adult-use cannabis contributing $2.5 billion…