September 25, 2020
Oregon Boosts Cannabis Tax Revenue Forecast Another $31M
It’s not the main reason Oregon’s budget future is shaping up better than expected, but data and forecasts released Wednesday show the positive effect of a large and sustained increase in cannabis sales since Covid-19 hit.
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September 25, 2020
Vermont House OKs Deal On Bill To Allow Marijuana Sale, Tax
The Vermont House of Representatives has approved a deal on a bill that would allow for the legal sale of marijuana, as well as taxation on those sales. The legislative conference committee report passed the House by a vote of 92-56 on Thursday, the Bennington Banner reported. It now heads to the state Senate, where a vote is expected next week.
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September 24, 2020
West Virginia House Candidates Pledge To Bring ‘Nation’s Strongest Cannabis Bill’ If Elected
Standing before a field of thigh-high hemp plants last week, a pair of candidates running for seats in the West Virginia House of Delegates previewed a marijuana legalization bill they plan to introduce if elected in November. Rusty Williams and Chris Yeager, Democrats running in West Virginia House Districts 35 and 14, respectively, announced the planned legislation, titled “The Normalization of Cannabis Act,” in a video streamed Friday on Facebook from Yeager’s hemp farm in Mason County. “I think that this bill is a great draft,” said Yeager, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran and owner of Appalachian Cannabis Co., which makes products from CBD derived from his farm’s hemp. “It gives us a starting point.” The proposal is being supported by WV Can’t Wait, a political advocacy group that asks candidates to sign a pledge to reject corporate campaign donations and sign on to an array of policy positions, including broadband internet for all, infrastructure investment, small-business support, a workers bill of rights and “full cannabis legalization.” Williams, who became involved in medical marijuana legalization efforts after being diagnosed with testicular cancer, according to his campaign website, helped successfully advocate for the state’s medical cannabis bill, signed into law in 2017. He described his new proposal in Friday’s video as “the first piece of comprehensive cannabis legislation that we intend to introduce should we both be fortunate enough to win in November.” A copy of the draft bill wasn’t immediately provided by WV Can’t Wait organizers, who instead pointed Marijuana Moment to a bulleted list of provisions, included in full at the end of this article. “People hear the term ‘comprehensive cannabis’ and want to know what that means,” Williams said on the live stream. “What that means is this bill will decriminalize the cultivation, production and personal use of cannabis for all West Virginia adults over 21.” Under the proposal, all adults 21 and over could grow up to 12 cannabis plants for personal use. While the bill would establish a “framework for taxation of commercial sales,” the candidates stressed that big business isn’t their goal. Instead, the proposal would allow so-called micro permits, which would license small, vertically integrated marijuana businesses. “One of the major criticisms we’ve had with the Medical Cannabis Act is that the entire industry was going to be run by ten companies,” Williams said. “When we end prohibition, we have got to make sure that we clear a path for small businesses and small farmers to get into the game and participate in this industry, and that’s exactly what micro permitting will do.” Permits would be discounted 50 percent to applicants convicted of past nonviolent cannabis crimes, Williams said, “as a means of restorative justice. I can’t stress it enough, here in West Virginia we have got a lot of wrongs to right when it comes to cannabis.” The prospective bill would also expunge the records of nonviolent cannabis convictions dating back to 1937, when prohibition first began, Williams said. “Not only will we release people from jail who are wrongfully incarcerated for possessing or using a plant, but this bill also provides for transitional services for people released, so we can help them with schooling, education, housing, anything that we can help them with to get them back into society, which is where they should be in the first place,” he said.
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September 24, 2020
Cannabis dispensary applicants getting a second chance for social equity licenses
Fairness in cannabis - that has always been the goal with legalized recreational marijuana in Illinois. The social equity portion of the state's law is aimed at bringing stronger diversity to the industry. However, many feel the cannabis dispensary lottery wasn't fair with only 21 groups initially moving forward for 75 licenses. 937 groups sent in nearly 2,600 applications combined. Gov. JB Pritzker went back to the drawing board with members of his administration to find a solution for hundreds of applicants who lost out earlier this month. Those groups will soon get a second chance to apply for licenses. "As governor, I'm not interested in protecting a process that people are afraid to trust," Pritzker said Tuesday. "I'm interested in doing everything we can to advance the priority we all share, and that's fairness." Social equity applicants who failed to hit a perfect score (252 points) during the initial process will receive a deficiency notice explaining why they lost points. They can then submit revised applications or ask the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation to rescore their documents in case of errors. "This was never about the first round, the first year, or the next election. This is about the next generation," said Toi Hutchinson, Pritzker's Senior Cannabis Advisor. "That's why I'm so proud to stand with Gov. Pritzker and the entire administration to see this through." Getting it right: The cannabis law requires IDFPR to evaluate the marketplace after the first 75 licenses are awarded. Pritzker said this could help bring new ideas to the General Assembly to improve equity and inclusion in the industry. "We want to make sure we get this right from the outset," Pritzker added. "The more costly thing, of course, would be getting it wrong and awarding licenses in a way that's not fair, and ending up with an industry that's not truly diverse." Even with the second shot at a license, many will come out empty-handed. As written in the law, the Pritzker administration can only give out 75 licenses before December 31. However, Hutchinson says more opportunities will sprout this year. "Whether or not you own the dispensary or you own the cultivation center, there are all kinds of vendors that go into each dispensary. There's supply chain," Hutchinson explained. "There's all different kinds of ways that this industry is going to grow with a population of people who now see a place for themselves in it." Applicants will have 10 days to respond to the deficiency notices from the administration. Pritzker hopes the lottery process will wrap up later this fall. "We do not want a world where people who absolutely earned points that they should have received are denied those points," Hutchinson added. "So, we're going to take our time to make sure that this is as thorough, and equitable, and fair as we possibly can make it."
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September 24, 2020
Marijuana Businesses Could Get Federal Disaster Relief Funds Under New Congressional Bill
Marijuana businesses impacted by recent natural disasters or that have experienced financial distress due to the coronavirus pandemic would be eligible for federal relief programs under new legislation introduced in the House of Representatives and Senate on Thursday. Because cannabis remains federally prohibited, the Small Business Administration (SBA) has explicitly denied the industry—and businesses that work indirectly with it—access to its relief programs like other markets. That means, for example, marijuana farmers in states like California and Oregon that have seen their crops destroyed by wildfires are fully dependent on state and local assistance. The new Small Business Disaster Relief Equity Act would resolve that problem, stipulating that disaster- or COVID-related services, grants, loans and tax benefits that are made available through federal agencies or congressional legislation cannot be denied to cannabis businesses solely because of the nature of their work, as long as it is in compliance with state law. What’s more, the bill states that the the heads of federal agencies that administer disaster relief such as SBA “shall, to the greatest extent practicable, allow State-legal cannabis businesses to retroactively apply for such disaster assistance.” Sens. Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and Reps. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) and Peter DeFazio (D-OR) filed the companion bills. “Cannabis businesses in Oregon hurt by the blazing wildfires or any other disaster shouldn’t be shut out from federal relief simply because the federal government is stuck in yesteryear,” Wyden said in a press release. “These legal small businesses employ thousands of workers and support our struggling economy. If they need federal support, they should get it. Full stop.” SBA recently confirmed to Marijuana Moment that while it opened a disaster relief loan program for Oregon businesses damaged or destroyed by the wildfires, the cannabis industry isn’t eligible. People working in the state-legal market whose primary residences were impacted could still apply, however, but not if they conduct their business from home.
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September 23, 2020
Vermont Bills To Legalize Marijuana Sales And Expunge Convictions Head To Governor’s Desk
A bill to legalize marijuana sales in Vermont and another to provide automatic expungements for cannabis convictions are heading to the governor’s desk following a final Senate vote on Tuesday. The legislation, which previously passed both chambers in differing forms, was recently merged into a compromise by a bicameral conference committee and then sent back to both chambers of the legislature for consent. The House of Representatives approved the negotiated legislation last week and the Senate followed suit with a 23-6 vote.
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September 23, 2020
New marijuana dispensary licenses stalled again as Pritzker vows to ‘get ... it right’
A day after giving losing applicants a second chance to qualify for a lottery to determine the winners of the next round of pot shop licenses, Gov. J.B. Pritzker declined Tuesday to give a date when the permits would be issued, only saying it would happen “this fall.” Under heavy fire from scorned hopefuls and lawmakers, Pritzker on Monday announced that candidates who didn’t receive perfect scores would be able to revise their applications and challenge the grades they received from the state. Only 21 of more than 900 applicants had advanced to the next round.
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September 23, 2020
Marijuana Accounts For One In Ten South Dakota Arrests, New Report Shows Ahead Of Legalization Vote
Marijuana arrests in South Dakota are common, costly and carried out on a racially disproportionate basis, a new report released by advocates for a legalization measure on the state’s November ballot shows. In fact, nearly one in 10 of all arrests in the state in 2018 were for cannabis offenses, with 95 percent of those cases concerning simple possession. There were 31,883 marijuana arrests in South Dakota from 2009 to 2018. That’s according to an analysis of federal crime data, which was published by South Dakotans for Better Marijuana Laws on Tuesday.
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September 22, 2020
VT gov happy with legal cannabis sales bill process (Newsletter: September 21, 2020)
TOP THINGS TO KNOW: Vermont Gov. Phil Scott (R) seems pleased with the process that led to a new marijuana sales legalization bill that just passed the House—though he stopped short of committing to sign it. One more vote in the Senate this week will put it on his desk.A new poll found that a majority of U.S. voters—including most Republicans—support a federal marijuana legalization bill that House Democratic leaders delayed a vote on over fears about the reelection prospects of their moderate lawmakers in key districts. A new report from the Congressional Research Service highlights four major consequences of federal marijuana prohibition. From consumers to researchers to banks, the current ban on cannabis is causing problems for a lot of people and institutions, the Capitol Hill office showed. The U.S. Department of Agriculture said hemp farmers can finally participate in a coronavirus relief program that they’d been ineligible for until now. Four separate federal agencies are now accepting public comments on cannabis issues ranging from marijuana research to hemp and CBD rules to workplace drug testing—with the deadline to send feedback on one proposal coming up on Monday. FEDERAL: The Drug Enforcement Administration’s proposed hemp rule is being challenged in a lawsuit by the Hemp Industries Association and RE Botanicals. Sen. Martha McSally (R-AZ) sidestepped a question about whether she supports her state’s marijuana legalization ballot measure, saying, she’ll “let the Arizona voters decide that.” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) spoke about how she is trying to get Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden to evolve on marijuana legalization. Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) tweeted, “The MORE Act is critical for ending the failed War on Drugs. The public deserves a vote on the MORE Act and we will continue to build support to meet our objective of passing it in the House & sending it to the Senate until it is the law.” The House bill to deschedule marijuana and fund programs to repair the harms of the war on drugs got two new cosponsors for a total of 113. The House bill to allow CBD as a dietary supplement got two new cosponsors for a total of three.
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A coalition of advocacy groups and marijuana businesses have unveiled a unique plan to legalize interstate cannabis commerce regardless of ongoing federal prohibition. The Alliance for Sensible Markets campaign will be pushing governors from legal and likely soon-to-be legal marijuana states to enter into an interstate compact—a constitutionally recognized agreement between two or more states—establishing a framework for cannabis to be transported and marketed across state lines. Such an arrangement hasn’t been tried before for marijuana, but if the new effort succeeds in getting at least two states to sign on, the compact would then be transmitted to Congress, where lawmakers would have the choice to codify the agreement. It could be passed as standalone legislation or attached as an amendment or rider to a broader bill. Perhaps the best example of an interstate compact is the Port Authority, which was created in 1921 to regulate regional transportation and infrastructure in New York and New Jersey. Those two states are actually being targeted by the Alliance for Sensible Markets, despite not having legalization on the books just yet. California and Oregon are the two other states the campaign hopes to bring on board. Part of the logic in choosing these states is that California and Oregon are considered producer states with high volumes of marijuana whereas New York and New Jersey are more traditionally consumer states, where the climate is less friendly to large-scale, outdoor cultivation. By opening a market that would allow for interstate commerce, it would “immediately increase valuations significantly for thousands of farms and businesses on the West Coast, which will spur investment expansion and jobs,” Adam Smith, founder and president of the Alliance for Sensible Markets, told Marijuana Moment. “And in consumer states—states that don’t traditionally grow their own cannabis—we have seen the length of time it takes to get state-siloed production industries up and running and supply chains stable.” “Let’s set up the industry in the newly legalizing states in a way that reflects reality and reflects what the future of this industry is so we can actually grow the industry without wiping a whole bunch of people out,” he said.
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