The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced on Wednesday that it has approved hemp regulatory plans from a U.S. territory and four additional Indian tribes. The U.S. Virgin Islands is the first territory to have its proposal accepted. USDA also signed off on plans from the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, Chippewa Cree Tribe, Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians and Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians. That brings the total number of approved plans across states, territories and tribes to 47.
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May 27, 2020
A Hidden Origin Story of the CBD Craze
Long before CBD had become a trendy wellness elixir found in juice and moisturizer and ice cream and dog treats; before corporate chains like Walgreens and Sephora had decided to sell it; and way before Kim Kardashian West had thrown a CBD-themed baby shower, a ragtag crew of activists, doctors, writers and marijuana farmers met up on an early winter evening in 2011. They sat in a circle at a house in the hills a few hours north of San Francisco — where wine country becomes weed country — to discuss the therapeutic potential of CBD, and how to get people to take it seriously.
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The Louisiana Senate approved a bill to significantly expand the state’s medical marijuana program on Wednesday, and a committee advanced separate legislation on banking access for cannabis businesses. The expansion proposal, which the House of Representatives approved last week, would allow physicians to recommend medical cannabis to patients for any debilitating condition that they deem fit instead of from the limited list of maladies that’s used under current law. The Senate Health and Welfare Committee advanced the proposal last week and now the full chamber has approved it ...
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May 27, 2020
‘Cannabis Treats COVID-19’ Rallied Weed Stocks: Cannabis Could Aid Pandemic—If Someone Pays To Find Out
Already down when the coronavirus pandemic kicked all markets, a few cannabis stocks enjoyed rallies Friday — gains connected, it would seem, to the coronavirus pandemic. Colorado’s CBD giant Charlotte’s Web, named for pediatric cannabis patient Charlotte Figi, who died last month of complications from the coronavirus, was up 24 percent on the Toronto Stock Exchange. But the big gain was on NASDAQ, where shares in Canadian firm Sundial spiked 50 percent—a jump, to $0.83 a share, that’s nothing close to wiping out last year’s losses, but nonetheless a very big rally in context.
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Our nation is in the midst of the greatest crisis in generations, with the Covid-19 pandemic impacting Americans’ physical and emotional well-being, while plummeting the nation’s economy into the worst economic downturn in our lifetimes. As the country begins what is likely to be a slow climb out of economic morass, federal, state, and local governments will be looking for new sources of revenue to replenish dwindling budgets and provide jobs to millions of Americans who find themselves out of work. The situation is reminiscent of what the country faced during the Great Depression nearly 100 years ago.
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May 27, 2020
Former Attorney General, Lawmakers And Police Leaders Call For Federal Marijuana Legalization Waivers
A task force comprised of former lawmakers, federal prosecutors and reform advocates issued a series of recommendations on Wednesday about criminal justice policy changes that should be enacted, and that includes creating a waiver system to allow states to set their own marijuana policies without federal interference. The Council on Criminal Justice task force was established prior to the coronavirus pandemic, but its new report said the health crisis has “underscored the urgency” of the recommendations. While the group is far from the only criminal justice-minded organization to push for cannabis reform, it’s especially notable because of the backgrounds of its membership.
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A bill clarifying language in the cannabis law passed the Senate but stalled in the House after lobbyists for Green Thumb Industries (GTI) pushed the idea that social equity in the system was at stake. Organizers say it was not. The bill gave current dispensaries the ability to move their dispensaries to new locations. The authors of the original cannabis law say that was always the intent and that it’s become necessary for dispensaries that started out catering only to medical use and expanded to recreational cannabis, bringing in thousands of customers. Those shops are struggling to handle the volume of customers — especially at a time when social distancing is so important.
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Less than a year after medical marijuana became legally available in Louisiana, lawmakers were on the verge of expanding access for some patients who currently don't meet the requirements to obtain a physician's recommendation. "It's legal now," Rep. Larry Bagley said. "There's no reason to restrict access and this was just to be sure that everybody could get it." House Bill 819, sponsored by Bagley, has already passed the House of Representatives and will face the final passage in the Senate on Tuesday. Right now, Louisiana has a long but tailored list of conditions that medical marijuana can be used to treat including cancer, Parkinson's disease, and epilepsy. Under Bagley's bill, therapeutic cannabis could be used to treat 'any condition' a doctor 'considers debilitating to an individual patient.'
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Pot shops are once again open for business in Massachusetts — with some limited operations and new guidelines. Under the state's reopening plan, recreational marijuana stores are now allowed to take online and phone orders to offer curbside pickup to customers. "We're just excited," said Kobie Evans, co-owner of Pure Oasis in Dorchester. "We're looking forward to seeing our staff and our customers, and really want to make sure that people are safe and staying healthy and, you know, just looking forward to this new opportunity to be open after being closed for so long." Pure Oasis — the first pot shop in Boston — was forced to shut down under a state order after being open for just two weeks.
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As COVID-19 cases continue to climb, people are staying home, limiting trips outside the house except for essential business. For millions of Americans, those essential trips include visits to cannabis dispensaries. Despite its federal status, cannabis has been deemed essential in most states where it is legal for medical or adult use. Yet the cannabis industry and those that it serves are disadvantaged by federal laws, which now, more than ever, have introduced avoidable risk and danger into the legal cannabis market. Federal lawmakers must act quickly to address these issues.
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