Author: Marijuana Moment

[ad_1] “The barriers to economic success in the cannabis industry are stacked highest against people of color.” By AnnMarie Hilton, Maine Morning Star The Legislature’s Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee had a public hearing last week on a bill to make Maine’s cannabis industry more equitable. The bill, LD1517, sponsored by House Speaker Rachel Talbot Ross (D-Portland), would create a program to remove barriers for individuals formerly convicted of a cannabis-related crime to enter and benefit from the now-legalized industry. In written testimony, Talbot Ross pointed out how the War on Drugs, which dates back to the 1970s, disproportionately imprisoned Black…

[ad_1] Arkansans for Patient Access—the ballot question committee behind the cannabis amendment—can amend its proposal and again seek the attorney general’s approval. By Hunter Field, Arkansas Advocate Arkansas’s attorney general on Monday rejected language for a ballot initiative meant to improve access for medical marijuana patients and trigger the legalization of recreational use if the drug becomes federally legal. Attorney General Tim Griffin (R) determined the ballot title for the Arkansas Medical Cannabis Amendment of 2024 was insufficient due to improper formatting of the proposed constitutional amendment and ambiguities about how the measure would affect existing state laws and rules.…

[ad_1] “While the state’s coffers continue to benefit from years of excessive revenue surpluses, and a property-tax increase is not needed at the state level, I realize some local governments are in desperate need of additional revenue.” By Randy Bracht, The Center Square Problem: Local governments in Washington state say they need more money to address affordable housing, public safety and other inflationary costs. Solution? Give cities and counties a bigger share of the state’s liquor and cannabis tax revenues. That’s the proposal of state Sen. Keith Wagoner (R-Sedro-Woolley) who has introduced two bipartisan bills as a counter-measure to calls…

[ad_1] “FDA’s approach to nicotine vape approvals serves as a stark reminder of why we must have the right regulatory framework and oversight.” By Douglas Fischer, Advanced Vapor Devices A recent Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals opinion on vaping sheds light on why federal cannabis legalization must be accompanied by a sensible regulatory framework that is administered and enforced by the right agency. The court’s opinion in Wages and White Lion Investment LLC v. Food and Drug Administration excoriates the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its handling of flavored e-cigarettes and underscores the dangers to the public…

[ad_1] “I’m here in open-mouth amazement that we are still discussing passing a medical marijuana bill… The same rhetoric from opponents and legislators. We’re just like this little island.” By Tim Carpenter, Kansas Reflector Delaney Jones’s grandmother, a survivor of European concentration camps during the Holocaust of World War II, suffered from a type of cancer that was often detected late, spread rapidly and had a poor prognosis. “She got really, really sick with pancreatic cancer late in life,” Jones said. “She said nothing she went through in the camps hurt like this.” She endured chemotherapy treatment for cancer and…

[ad_1] “The idea is to make this accessible. When you talk about the will of the people, they want it to be accessible.” By John Hult, South Dakota Searchlight A Senate panel chaired by a member of the state’s Medical Marijuana Oversight Committee shot down a bill Wednesday with far-reaching implications for cannabis patients. Among nine bills that would adjust South Dakota’s medical cannabis laws this legislative session in Pierre, seven remain alive, including bills to hike the price of a dispensary license, allow police to search dispensaries and force prescribers to notify a patient’s primary care provider about their…

[ad_1] “I think discovery would be helpful…based on what’s been pleaded.” By Alander Rocha, Alabama Reflector A Montgomery County Circuit Judge Wednesday ordered five Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission (AMCC) members and director John McMillan to provide testimony on the licensing process. Judge James Anderson also granted a motion allowing plaintiffs to submit written questions and ask for documents prior to the hearing on whether the commission followed the law and its own rules in each round of license awards. “I think discovery would be helpful…based on what’s been pleaded,” Anderson said. The judge allowed seven hours per live testimony. Depending…

[ad_1] “The only thing we don’t have right now is the employees because we don’t have a license.” By Rosalind Adams, The City The sudden cancellation of a state cannabis licensing board meeting scheduled for Wednesday left applicants hoping to run weed businesses fuming. After learning of the cancellation Tuesday evening, LakeHouse Cannabis CEO Paul Suits Jr. sent a two page document outlining his frustrations trying to win a dispensary license to the Office of Cannabis Management—remarks he had planned to read aloud at the state Cannabis Control Board meeting. Suits applied in October for a retail license to sell…

[ad_1] “We’ve also increased Governor’s Office capacity for research about potential appointments.” By Peter Callaghan, MinnPost This story was originally published by MinnPost. Gov. Tim Walz (D) and his staff didn’t follow standard procedures before they appointed—and then accepted the resignation of—the state’s first Office of Cannabis Management director. That’s the conclusion of the Office of Legislative Auditor that reviewed the September appointment of Erin DuPree to be the state’s first-ever cannabis czar. Walz had admitted previously that the appointment was not “the finest hour” of his administration. He has yet to fill the vacancy. The report concluded that the governor’s office and the…

[ad_1] “We’ve spread a wide net on this. And we believe that this is really the compromise path.” By Ben Botkin, Oregon Capital Chronicle Oregon Democratic legislators plan to fight the state’s war on drug addiction and overdoses on multiple battle fronts. They want to build residential facilities to treat people, give police the ability to arrest people for possession and have programs to help people get off drugs, from offering medication in jails to sobering centers and clinics. They want dealers to face tougher penalties when they sell drugs in parks or within 500 feet of homeless shelters and…

[ad_1] “I think there should be some regulation, and I think that what this calls for is a slight change in business model as opposed to a complete closure.” By Mitch Perry, Florida Phoenix Ashley Guy runs a smoke shop in Tallahassee. She says she’s thrived since she moved from Seattle to Florida five years ago, with profits of more than $5 million from the sales of cannabis hemp products. But if a new proposal in the Florida Legislature passes, “this would just decimate business” she said on Tuesday. She added that if the caps on THC—the compound in the…

[ad_1] “I want to get a bill through the Assembly where we can get the votes to be able to show that we support the concept and then let the Senate act as it will.” By Baylor Spears, Wisconsin Examiner Wisconsin Assembly Republicans’ limited medical marijuana legalization proposal poses several concerns related to cost, accessibility and potential conflicts with the federal government that lawmakers should consider, policy experts told the Wisconsin Examiner. The proposal by Assembly Republicans would create the Office of Medical Cannabis Regulation in the Department of Health Services. The office would maintain a registry of patients and…