Newsletter
Candidates pay for hundreds of Facebook cannabis ads (Newsletter: July 24, 2018)
Legalizing drugs would boost gov’t budgets by $100 billion; Snopes smashes fake marijuana news; VT AG shuts down cannabis “gifting”
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/ TOP THINGS TO KNOW
A Marijuana Moment analysis found that hundreds of politicians have posted thousands of paid Facebook ads promoting their support for cannabis law reform. U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), a possible 2020 presidential candidate, posted nearly 50 such ads on 4/20 alone.
A new study from a Harvard University researcher and the Cato Institute finds that legalizing marijuana and other drugs would boost federal and state budgets by more than $100 billion a year.
The myth debunkers at Snopes cited a purposefully fake story about marijuana DNA being from outer space as an example of how too many people share “news” on the internet without even reading it first.
/ FEDERAL
A Republican-backed opposition research effort digging into the backgrounds of potential 2020 Democratic presidential candidates is intended to “stoke emerging flashpoints such as…legalizing marijuana,” according to Politico.
/ STATES
Vermont’s attorney general issued an advisory saying that “gifting” marijuana as part of a transaction involving the sales of other goods or services is illegal.
New Jersey’s health commissioner published an op-ed on the need to expand the state’s medical cannabis program.
The Oklahoma legislature’s Medical Marijuana Working Group will hold its first meeting on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the Board of Pharmacy is considering disciplinary action against its executive director after it was revealed she is under investigation for appearing to offer a regulatory attorney a job in exchange for rules requiring that medical cannabis dispensaries employ pharmacists. Separately, the secretary of state said that proposed marijuana legalization and medical cannabis expansion initiatives are unlikely to appear on the November ballot even if they collect enough signatures.
Minnesota Republican gubernatorial candidate Jeff Johnson said he opposes legalizing marijuana.
Michigan Democratic gubernatorial candidate Abdul El-Sayed tweeted, “Marijuana is no more dangerous than alcohol and has clear medical benefits. Criminalizing it keeps it from people who need it, contributes to unnecessary incarceration, & marginalizes people of color. We don’t need more of that – not in America, not in Michigan.” Meanwhile, Republican gubernatorial candidate Patrick Colbeck, currently a state senator, said “we’ll find a way to make [legalization] work but I’m not excited about it.”
/ INTERNATIONAL
New Zealand Acting Prime Minister Winston Peters said that voters should be able to make a decision about whether to decriminalize marijuana through a referendum. Meanwhile, an opposition party is preparing to introduce a comprehensive medical cannabis bill that could undermine support for one the government is pushing.
Canadian marijuana arrests are at a 20-year low as legalization approaches.
/ SCIENCE & HEALTH
A study concluded that “Americans’ view of marijuana use is more favorable than existing evidence supports.”
A study found that “subacute dosing [of THC/CBD oromucosal spray] might elicit a subjective clinically significant effect on MS-related spasticity.”
A study concluded that “marijuana use, especially non-medical use, among patients with depression may impede depression symptom improvement while lessening the likelihood of psychiatry visits.”
A study found that “cannabis consumers do not necessarily choose dabs over flower products for positive effects, but rather appear to choose these highly potent products for experimentation.”
Researchers developed a “reliable and rapid method for the identification and quantification of the psychotropic Δ9‐tetrahydrocannabinol, its non‐psychoactive precursor Δ9‐tetrahydrocannabinolic acid A, and seven other cannabinoids” in food and beverages.
Florida A&M University is hiring a director of medical marijuana projects.
/ OPINION & ANALYSIS
A poll of New Zealand voters found that 87% support allowing medical cannabis for pain relief, 67% support decriminalizing personal possession and 49% would vote for a referendum legalizing the sale of marijuana.
A poll found that Oklahoma likely voters are divided 47%-47% on banning the sales of smokable medical cannabis. By a 51-43% margin, they support rules requiring dispensaries to employ pharmacists. And they oppose a proposed marijuana legalization ballot measure, 32%-62%.
The Tulsa World editorial board is urging state regulators to quickly rescind restrictive medical cannabis rules.
The Pacific Daily News editorial board is pushing Guam officials to implement medical cannabis as soon as possible.
/ BUSINESS
LivWell is going public and has secured perpetual Canadian distribution rights to Willie Nelson’s marijuana brand.
Acreage Holdings plans to go public this fall.
First Green Bancorp had to agree to stop serving marijuana businesses as part of an acquisition deal.
An analysis from Frost & Sullivan projects that medical cannabis revenues will overtake recreational marijuana revenues in the next four years.
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