December 11, 2020
The future of cannabis legalization
On Wednesday, the House of Representatives passed a bill that will make it easier for states where cannabis is legal to carry out research on the drug. This bipartisan decision followed on the heels of another groundbreaking House bill which could end federal marijuana convictions and erase some past ones. Closer to home in New Jersey, voters on election day decided to amend the state constitution and legalize cannabis statewide. What are the chances of these federal bills passing through the Senate and could New Jersey set the standard for the future legal status of cannabis in the region? New Jersey Senator NICHOLAS SCUTARI starts off our hour with an update from his state. Then, POLITICO states cannabis policy reporter MONA ZHANG gives us a look at the pending federal legislation.
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December 11, 2020
N.J. should allow medical patients, low-wage earners to grown their own marijuana | Opinion
As the New Jersey Legislature crafts legislation that will put meat on the bones of the successful cannabis legalization ballot initiative, one topic has received increasing public attention. Once called a “non-starter” by some legislators, the right of New Jerseyans to cultivate (or “home grow”) a limited number of cannabis plants has become a real possibility. In my role as founder of the international organization Doctors for Cannabis Regulation (DFCR), and as a founding steering committee member of New Jersey United for Marijuana Reform (NJUMR), I have supported people’s right to home cultivation both here and around the country. The possibility that New Jersey would not allow home grow is a perplexing one. Every one of the 11 states that have legalized cannabis for adult use also legalized home cultivation for medical and/or personal use. Among the four states that voted to legalize adult use in last month’s election, only New Jersey has threatened to prohibit all home cultivation. There are compelling public health, personal liberty and social justice priorities that explain every other state legislatures’ unanimity on this issue. Given that a Rutgers-Eagleton poll showed that 60% of New Jerseyans support home cultivation, it’s more of a “no-brainer” than a “non-starter.” We voted overwhelmingly to end cannabis prohibition in the Garden State last month because of its devastating effect on low-income communities and communities of color. Banning our citizens from growing their own cannabis will only perpetuate the harms caused by overzealous policing. Just as Black New Jerseyans are far more likely to be arrested for cannabis possession than their white counterparts, they would surely be disproportionately targeted for the simple act of growing a few plants for medical or personal use. The cultivation of psychoactive cannabis is far from trivial. While it’s easy enough to plant a seed and watch it germinate, the production of usable cannabis flower requires specific temperature and soil conditions. Cannabis will only flower if the plant is female and lighting conditions are carefully adjusted over the lifetime of the plant. This is why the great majority of cannabis consumers would prefer to buy their cannabis than try to grow it. In the same way, most New Jerseyans choose to purchase beer or wine rather than engage in the sophisticated art of making their own, even though it is perfectly legal for adults to do so. Thus, home cultivation barely makes a dent in the legal cannabis market. However, for low-income adults who have a greater abundance of time than money, a ban on home grow would infringe upon their liberty and prevent their enjoyment of a legal substance that is generally less harmful than alcohol and tobacco. Opponents of home cultivation claim that police will be unable to enforce laws against unlicensed commercial cannabis cultivation. However, home cultivation laws have worked well in other states, as regulations specify a strict personal allowance averaging 5 to 6 plants that must be kept in a secure location. This should pose no impediment to law enforcement, as police can quickly and easily verify that households don’t exceed the small number of home-grown cannabis plants when called upon to do so. Physicians like me recognize a public health argument for allowing home cultivation. Medical cannabis patients often find that only a few specific strains are effective and well-tolerated. Those who need a particular strain should be able to grow it if it isn’t available in dispensaries.
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December 9, 2020
What is the future of legal marijuana in Florida?
The U.S. House of Representatives on Friday voted to decriminalize marijuana. Most Democrats supported the bill that would enact that change. Most Republicans did not. The bill is unlikely to gain traction in the Republican-controlled U.S. Senate. Was Congress’ historic vote an early sign of momentum to legalize marijuana across the United States? Or is was it a low-stakes move on a splashy issue that’s unlikely to go anywhere? Florida is home to plenty who are interested in the answer. “We talk all the time on the right about the need to empower people and empower states,” U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fort Walton Beach, said in an impassioned speech on the House floor in support of the bill, the MORE Act. “Right now, the federal policy on cannabis constrains our people. It limits our states.” Gaetz, who helped author Florida’s very first medical marijuana program as a state representative in 2014, was one of just five Republicans to support the bill. Another Florida Republican, Brian Mast, R-Palm City, also voted for the measure. Mast’s office did not respond to requests for comment for this story. In addition to essentially legalizing marijuana at the federal level, the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act establishes a federal tax on cannabis products. That tax money would be set aside in a trust fund for people and businesses that have been affected by the federal war on drugs. A 2020 study by the American Civil Liberties Union showed that Black Americans are nearly four times more likely than white Americans to be arrested for marijuana possession, despite using the drug at a similar rate.
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In September, the House postponed a vote on the MORE Act (H.R.3884), which would de-schedule cannabis. Now that this legislation has passed the House and moves onto the Senate, safety leaders must again warn lawmakers to exercise caution. While the MORE Act includes some provisions that would not cause workplace safety concern, such as the removal of punitive actions for drug violations, any de-scheduling of cannabis must be done with care. Steps toward legalization need to include an evaluation of the impact that legalized cannabis use will have on transportation and workplace safety. We have an obligation to protect workers and all who use our roadways, and cannabis use can create serious risks in both environments. Data should always drive policy decisions. Cannabis is an impairing substance whose use has been on the rise, and a substance without clear and scientifically defined levels of impairment. Unfortunately, no cannabis test currently exists that correlates well with impairment level such as breath alcohol or blood alcohol. At this time we know little about cannabis impairment, the side effects or long-term health implications, as well as the implications for workplace safety. These questions can only be answered through rigorous research. We know that cannabis has the ability to impair, and on-the-job impairment can have serious consequences, particularly for workers in safety-sensitive positions and all those around them. It is difficult to ascertain if a worker may be impaired, when they last used cannabis and whether they pose a risk to co-workers, customers or the general public. This is akin to the potential for “driving under the influence” for those operating commercial aircraft, trucks, trains, buses, cranes and forklifts. One troubling trend during the pandemic has been an increase in impaired driving, including from cannabis. Potential mishaps can also result from impairment of a worker on the floor of a chemical plant, at a construction site, warehouse or other operation with inherent risk.
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December 9, 2020
Legalize Marijuana Bill filed in Florida
Four more states voted to legalize recreational marijuana for adults in November, and late Friday, the U.S. House voted to decriminalize marijuana at the federal level. One, if not two, legalization amendments are likely to make the 2022 ballot here in Florida, and a powerful state senator has filed a bill to keep control of marijuana in the Legislature’s hands. Arizona, Montana, New Jersey and South Dakota all voted to legalize recreational marijuana this past November. That brings the total to 15 states nationwide. Florida could vote on not one, but two referendums in 2022. Nick Hansen is leading one of them. “There is an economic need for this. Folks understand that this is a tremendous economic driver in these states that have implemented it correctly and well. And it can really bolster those states’ coffers for things like education,” said Hansen.Polls suggest two out of three voters support legalization.
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December 9, 2020
S.D. industrial-hemp rules get green light
South Dakota’s industrial-hemp program will soon be off the ground. The Legislature’s Rules Review Committee gave final clearance Monday to regulations proposed by two of state government’s departments. The vote was 5-1. No one testified as an opponent. But watching from the audience was Representative Nancy York, a Watertown Republican who voted against the legislation. Lawmakers said yes to hemp whose THC content doesn’t exceed 0.3%. Governor Kristi Noem signed the measure into law March 30 after vetoing a somewhat similar bill in 2019. The state Department of Agriculture received approval of South Dakota’s plan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture before proposing the rules. The state Department of Public Safety also has enforcement roles.
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December 9, 2020
The US House just voted to decriminalize marijuana — but timid Democrats don’t deserve an ovation
The Democrat-led US House made history Friday when members voted 228-164 in favor of decriminalizing and taxing marijuana at the federal level, while wiping away old convictions and investing the spoils in communities hit hardest by the war on drugs. There was, predictably, much rejoicing by the cannabis industry and marijuana advocates. And it wasn’t entirely undeserved. Let’s not give the Blue Team too much credit, though. First of all, House leaders had originally planned to yea-or-nay the measure, called the MORE Act, back in September. But a handful of centrists up for re-election in purple districts complained the bill made them vulnerable to attacks by their Republican proponents in the critical weeks leading up the November election. Leadership obligingly pulled the plug, long after the date of the vote had been announced. Then November came around and — whoops! Voters all over the United States easily approved marijuana legalization ballot measures, including those in blood-red Montana and South Dakota, purple Arizona, and deep-blue New Jersey. Oklahoma, another red state, apparently now has “the hottest weed market in the nation,” and voters in progressive areas such as Oregon are moving on and decriminalizing other drugs, a push that will soon come to Massachusetts and elsewhere. Meanwhile, the most recent polls show support for legalization nearing 70 percent among Americans, with more than 90 percent (yes, really) backing legal medical marijuana and fewer than 10 percent saying the drug should remain completely illegal. So while I’m not rooting for any particular policy here, I am wondering why political consultants on both sides of the aisle aren’t grabbing their clients by the collar and shouting, “what are you waiting for?! The drug war is over! Drugs won! Scoreboard, bro!”
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There’s a renewed push to legalize medical and recreational marijuana in Nebraska, lawmakers say they plan to obtain 250,000 total signatures to get both medical initiatives on the ballot in 2022. Nebraska voters are already weighing the pros and cons to both proposals. “There's a negative propaganda about it and I think... people should look deeper into it,” said Nick Hancke. “There’s a positive aspect to it than what’s been said about it.” “I think everything has its limitations,” said Princess Brown. “So as long as it’s not something that is going to be abused, which we all know people do that, I do think it would be beneficial.” Nebraska State Senator Adam Morfeld said many voters are on board with medical and recreational marijuana, so that is why he’s pushing to legal both. “I also know of a lot of Nebraskans who have decided to not stay and live in Nebraska, or not come to Nebraska simply because we have such ‘behind the times’ medical or adult-use marijuana laws,” said Morfeld. The decision to legalize medical marijuana was nearly in the hands of voters this year, but Nebraska's supreme court pulled it from the 2020 ballot. Voters say this new effort is giving them hope. “If it’s not for you then don’t it,” said Brown. “But if there is someone who needs it, if it’s going to be beneficial to them and do it as a recreational choice then so be it." “It would make it so that a bunch of Nebraskans who are already using marijuana would not be using it illegally,” said Morfeld. “It would allow people who have medical conditions to also use it." Governor Pete Ricketts has long opposed legalizing medical marijuana. Ricketts said cannabis decreases productivity, while making workplaces less safe.
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December 9, 2020
In economic crisis, Texas Democrats push to legalize marijuana. Key Republicans likely stand in the way.
Texas (The Texas Tribune) - With a state budget devastated by the coronavirus, some Democratic lawmakers are hoping the economic crisis could become an opportunity to coax Texas into joining a growing number of states opting to legalize — and tax — recreational marijuana use. The chances are slim. State Sen. Roland Gutierrez of San Antonio and state Rep. Joe Moody of El Paso filed bills this week in advance of the 2021 legislative session that would legalize, regulate and tax personal cannabis use. State Rep. Terry Canales of Edinburg has proposed putting the question of legalization to Texas voters. The coronavirus pandemic has blown a $4.6 billion hole in the state budget, according to the comptroller’s latest estimate, and the lawmakers argue that a legal marijuana industry could bring in hundreds of millions in tax revenue and create tens of thousands of jobs. Voters in more and more states, they note, have legalized recreational cannabis use, including four more this month bringing the total to 15. At the same time, marijuana arrests and prosecutions across Texas have been plummeting, largely because a bill passed last year that legalizes hemp has thrown prosecutions into disarray, and some cities have already eased off on pursuing small pot cases. “As we see a number of states engaging around the country in a retail market, this is no longer an experiment,” Moody said. “It is also no secret that we are heading into some rough economic waters and we need to explore every possible revenue stream.” But changes to marijuana laws still face powerful opposition at the Texas Capitol. The handful of legalization proposals filed in recent years have received little to no attention from lawmakers. And even less controversial measures, like lowering criminal penalties for marijuana possession, have fallen flat in the Texas Senate. With Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, a staunch conservative, at the helm of the upper chamber, it remains unlikely that a legalization bill will make it out when the Legislature reconvenes in January.
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The constitutional amendment authorizing recreational marijuana in New Jersey takes effect on New Year’s Day, but the Garden State’s Democratic-led Legislature has been at an impasse over measures decriminalizing marijuana. Late Friday, Gov. Phil Murphy and legislators said they did reach an agreement on setting up the new recreational marketplace, but did not disclose details. Lawmakers and lobbyists expressed cautious confidence that the measures will move forward, but the logjam comes even though the top two legislative leaders and the governor largely agree on how to move forward more than a year after the trio announced their support for legalization. Legislators penciled in Dec. 17 for the final voting sessions of the year. Voters overwhelmingly said yes to a constitutional amendment that legalizes a recreational marijuana market for people 21 and older. But the amendment doesn’t specify what that market would look like, beyond tasking the Cannabis Regulatory Commission with overseeing it. The amendment also does not address laws on the books that outlaw marijuana offenses, like possession and distribution. Neither does any state law address a cannabis marketplace. The Legislature has always known it would need to step in.
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