Author: Marijuana Moment

[ad_1] “I feel like you can never get too excited until you make your first sale. There’s just been so much disappointment.” By Rosalind Adams, THE CITY This story was originally published by THE CITY. Sign up to get the latest New York City news delivered to you each morning. Hundreds of people impacted by cannabis-related criminal charges will finally be allowed to move forward with the pot-shops they had already been granted licenses for—if the terms of a settlement agreement filed Tuesday are approved. With marijuana legalization in 2021, the state created a special class of license called the Conditional Adult-Use…

[ad_1] “We’re like a trauma center for the nation’s worst depressed people. This industry’s like a triage for people like that.” By Grant Singer, Oregon Capital Chronicle Hundreds of people have used psilocybin legally in Oregon since the first licensed center opened in Eugene in June. But only a minority appear to be from Oregon. Though data about clients is protected by confidentiality rules, several magic mushroom entrepreneurs told the Capital Chronicle that most customers have traveled to Oregon from out of state to take the drug in a safe setting. Brian Lindley, co-owner of the psilocybin center Omnia Group…

[ad_1] “I don’t think that our process before this one was flawed. There was value in what we did.” By Ralph Chapoco, Alabama Reflector Companies went before the Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission Monday to make their cases for getting licenses, kicking off the third attempt to award medical marijuana licenses in the state. Most of the applicants were allotted 20 minutes to speak to the commission. Most stressed their expertise; some addressed perceived shortcomings in their applications. “When somebody is making a presentation, you can kind of read into what they are thinking,” said Rex Vaughn, chair of the Alabama…

[ad_1] “There is an increasing sense that we are on the wrong road. Not only are careers being cut short, but vital industries, starved for highly skilled workers, are losing talented, safety-conscious employees for no reason.” By Lee Seham of Seham, Seham, Meltz & Petersen LLP As a social conservative, alcohol has always been my drug of choice. For me, the odor of marijuana on a city street evokes a discomfiting sense of lawlessness and societal decline. But I remind myself that Carrie Nation, who attacked alcohol-service establishments with a hatchet in the lead-up to prohibition, had the same feelings…

[ad_1] “This is absolutely a preventable misstep. I’m hoping that we can get to the bottom of it in our budget committee.” By Joe Mueller, The Center Square The city of St. Louis will lose approximately $500,000 in tax revenue after it failed to submit documents with the Missouri Department of Revenue to collect a voter-approved recreational marijuana tax. City voters approved a 3 percent tax on recreational marijuana in April. State law would have allowed the city to begin collecting the tax on October 1 if paperwork was filed by June 30. Bill 139 was passed unanimously by the…

[ad_1] “This essentially says that if you’re a wealthy person who wants to engage in the cannabis industry—you will now get additional support from the state.” By Christopher Shea, Rhode Island Current What constitutes a community that is disproportionately impacted by the war on drugs? That’s the question Rhode Island’s Cannabis Control Commission hopes to better define as it works on initial regulations for recreational dispensaries. To do so, Chairperson Kimberly Ahern said at the commission’s November 3 meeting she would request data from state and federal agencies on which Rhode Islanders would qualify for one of the 12 special…

[ad_1] “The public interest in this case is best served by independent auditors providing evidence-supported recommendations to state government.” By Ben Botkin, Oregon Capital Chronicle Oregonians still can access the audit of the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission after former Secretary of State Shemia Fagan’s (D) moonlighting scandal with cannabis company La Mota put the audit under intense scrutiny. Oregon Secretary of State LaVonne Griffin-Valade (D), who released her review of the audit on Monday, said in a release that it is of the same quality as others by the agency and should be treated the same way and remain…

[ad_1] “Changing the use of these funds, though, could potentially have impacts on the economic efficiency of recreational marijuana legalization.” By Rob Moore, Scioto Analysis Earlier this month, Ohio became the 24th state to legalize the sale and purchase of marijuana for recreational use. Even before Issue 2 was passed by the voters, leaders in the Ohio General Assembly were signaling their intentions to change the law after its passage. Unlike Issue 1, which was a constitutional amendment, Issue 2 is an initiated statute. That means legislators can go back and change the law afterwards. And it seems like they…

[ad_1] “We were pushing our rights. We’re just sick of being held down. And every economic opportunity, we’re held back from.” By Max Nesterak, Minnesota Reformer About three months ago, Mahnomen County sheriff’s deputies and White Earth tribal police raided Todd Thompson’s tobacco shop, seizing around seven pounds of cannabis, along with $3,000 in cash, his cell phone and surveillance system. The August 2 raid happened the day after recreational marijuana became legal across the state and was the first major enforcement action under the new law. But no charges have been filed in the case—and the state may not…

[ad_1] “Businesses that choose to participate in Missouri’s marijuana industry do not get to decide which rules and which parts of [the constitution] they want to follow.” By Rebecca Rivas, Missouri Independent The state’s Division of Cannabis Regulation is revoking the marijuana manufacturing license of Delta Extraction after accusing the company of illegally importing “marijuana product” from out-of-state and adding it to Missouri-grown marijuana products. The revocation will take effect on December 2. The Robertsville-based company is at the center of Missouri’s massive marijuana recall that was issued on August 14. The state recently rolled back part of the recall,…

[ad_1] “What we’re saying is these [rules] aren’t rationally related to protecting kids, and they are not something that you have authority to do under our constitution.” By Rebecca Rivas, Missouri Independent A panel of Missouri lawmakers has spent several hours in recent weeks debating whether or not aliens and robots should be banned on marijuana product labels. Humans, animals and fruits are already not allowed—an effort by the state to keep products out of the hands of children. But would robots fall under that ban? “In my opinion, a robot is not encompassed within the definition of a human…

[ad_1] “The perception was that they were getting handed free money by the state—that they’re being subsidized. But the reality was, that’s not the case, because the state basically couldn’t raise any money.” By Rosalind Adams, THE CITY This story was originally published by THE CITY. Sign up to get the latest New York City news delivered to you each morning. In January 2022, Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) outlined a bold vision to support the ambitious social-equity goals of New York’s new cannabis law: The state would create a $200 million fund to build out ready-to-open dispensaries in prime locations…