Author: Kyle Jaeger

[ad_1] A New Hampshire House lawmaker says that he’s defecting from the Republican party to become in an independent—in part because of his frustration over the Senate’s repeated refusal to approve marijuana legalization. Rep. Dan Hynes said on Tuesday that he is leaving the GOP because he feels the party has lost touch with its founding principles, including promoting “individual freedom.” Among his specific contentions is that “Republicans in the senate almost unanimously voted against legalizing marijuana for adults” this session, referencing a House-passed cannabis reform bill sponsored by bipartisan leadership. “It is clear they are out of touch with…

[ad_1] A Republican congressman who is a military veteran says undergoing psychedelic-assisted treatment with ibogaine and 5-MeO-DMT “changed my life” and was “one of the greatest things that ever happened to me.” At a press briefing outside of the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, several GOP lawmakers and military veterans discussed a newly introduced bill to create a $75 million federal grant program to support research into the therapeutic potential of psychedelics for certain health conditions among active duty military service members. Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) is leading that bipartisan legislation, titled the “Douglas ‘Mike’ Day Psychedelic Therapy to Save Lives…

[ad_1] The governor of Nevada has signed a bill to create a new working group to study psychedelics and develop a plan to allow regulated access for therapeutic purposes. Gov. Joe Lombardo (R) approved the legislation from Sen. Rochelle Nguyen (D) on Monday, just one week after it cleared the legislature. As introduced, the measure would have legalized psilocybin and promoted research into the psychedelic, as well as encouraged studies of MDMA—but it was significantly scaled back in a Senate committee. The new law created by the revised measure focuses on forming a Psychedelic Medicines Working Group to examine the…

[ad_1] Washington State will spend nearly $100 million to vacate an estimated 350,000 prior drug convictions and reimburse legal fees to people who were prosecuted under laws that the state Supreme Court deemed unconstitutional in 2021. The state Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) announced on Monday that it would be launching the Blake Refund Bureau next month, facilitating the relief in coordination with “local courts, county clerks, public defenders, prosecutor, impacted individuals, advocacy groups and other stakeholders.” The novel reimbursement fund is being created following the state Supreme Court’s landmark 2021 ruling that found the state’s criminal code for…

[ad_1] The governor of Illinois has signed a budget bill that includes provisions that will allow licensed marijuana businesses to take state tax deductions that they’re currently prohibited from utilizing at the federal level due to an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) code known as 280E. Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) gave final approval to the legislation—which also contains language directing funding to a cannabis development fund and extends a deadline for conditional licensees to find storefronts—last week. A key section that’s now been enacted decouples marijuana businesses from the federal tax policy, which currently bans the industry from making key deductions…

[ad_1] Americans consider marijuana to be significantly less dangerous than cigarettes, alcohol and opioids—and they say cannabis is less addictive than each of those substances, as well as technology—according to a new poll. The survey, released by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and Morning Consult last week, looked at public opinion on the dangers and addictiveness of six different substances, plus technology. With respect to marijuana, 38 percent said that it is “very or somewhat unsafe.” People were far more likely to regard as unsafe cigarettes (84 percent), alcohol (64 percent), prescription opioids (66 percent), non-prescription opioids (75 percent) and…

[ad_1] An anti-drug group says that if Congress passes a bipartisan marijuana banking reform bill, it will lead to increased traffic fatalities and hospitalizations. The non-profit Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA) sent out a call-to-action email blast on Tuesday, encouraging its members to contact their federal representatives and senators with a pre-written letter opposing the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act. It claimed in the email that the legislation—which would protect banks, credit unions and certain depository institutions from being penalized by federal regulators simply for working with state-licensed cannabis businesses—would “set a precedent to allow other federally…

[ad_1] The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is weighing in on the legal status of lesser known cannabinoids such as THCA, delta-8 THC and hydrogenated CBD. In a letter dated June 9, DEA said it was responding to a request for information about the scheduling status of the cannabis components under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). There’s been some confusion about the legality of minor cannabinoids since hemp containing up to 0.3 percent delta-9 THC by dry weight was federally legalized under the 2018 Farm Bill. The letter, posted on Reddit and analyzed by attorney Rod Kight, says that delta-8 THC…

[ad_1] The governor of Connecticut has signed budget legislation that includes provisions to provide state-level tax relief to licensed marijuana businesses that are currently prohibited for making federal deductions under an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) code known as 280E. Gov. Ned Lamont (D) approved the package on Monday, touting the overall tax relief and specifically highlighting how much money the cannabis industry is estimated to save with the new policy. Giving marijuana businesses the state-level 280E workaround is expected to translate into $4.7 million in industry relief for the 2024 fiscal year, which will increase to $6.2 million in the 2025…

[ad_1] The Rhode Island House of Representatives has approved a bill to legalize possession and cultivation of psilocybin mushrooms, while taking steps to prepare for regulated therapeutic access pending federal reform. The legislation from Rep. Brandon Potter (D), which cleared a key committee last week, passed on the floor in a 54-11 vote on Monday, sending it to the Senate for consideration. A Senate companion version from Sen. Megan Kallman (D) also recently received a hearing in the chamber’s respective committee, but members agreed to hold it for further study before potentially scheduling a vote in that chamber. The legislation…