Newsletter
Cannabis developments in Congress (Newsletter: June 13, 2024)

TX decrim lawsuit dismissed; DeSantis’s latest marijuana claim; CA psilocybin; Study: Dispensaries reduce opioid use; MO expungements; MA hemp
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/ TOP THINGS TO KNOW
A new House Appropriations Committee report calls on federal agencies to study “the adequacy of state marijuana regulatory frameworks” and reconsider cannabis use restrictions for government workers.
The House Rules Committee blocked all marijuana, psychedelics and hemp amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act from floor votes—both pro- and anti-reform proposals—leaving intact an NDAA provision to prevent military branches from testing recruits for cannabis as a condition of enlistment.
A Texas judge dismissed Attorney General Ken Paxton’s (R) lawsuit seeking to overturn a local voter-approved marijuana decriminalization law in Austin. Separate cases he has filed against other cities’ cannabis policies are still pending.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) claimed that if voters approve a marijuana legalization initiative on the November ballot, “you will be able to bring 20 joints to an elementary school”—complaining again about the smell of cannabis.
- “Even if you have no interest in marijuana, marijuana will have an interest in you.”
California lawmakers filed legislation to authorize a pilot program that would provide psilocybin treatment to military veterans and first responders.
A new study found that “communities located closer to recreational [marijuana] dispensaries are associated with lower rates of prescription opioids per capita.”
Missouri courts have only spent less than 10 percent of funds allocated to support marijuana conviction expungement efforts as officials have missed deadlines to finish the job of clearing records.
The Massachusetts legislature’s Joint Committees on Agriculture and Cannabis Policy held a hearing on intoxicating hemp products, but a key lawmaker said it’s unlikely any reforms will be passed this session.
Businesses in Oregon’s first-in-the-nation legal psilocybin services industry are struggling to find customers willing to pay $800-$2,500 for supervised psychedelic sessions, with at least one facility shutting down in a market that a mushroom cultivator says is in danger of being “oversaturated.”
/ FEDERAL
The Drug Enforcement Administration is promoting an op-ed by the head of a prohibitionist organization that claims that marijuana rescheduling will “put return for investors ahead of public health.”
The National Institute of Standards and Technology posted a Federal Register notice about an upcoming National Conference on Weights and Measures conference next month at which members will consider standards on cannabis moisture loss or gain.
Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) expressed concerns during a hearing about marijuana sales by the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians within North Carolina.
/ STATES
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) sent a press release touting the issuance of new marijuana business licenses.
Mississippi officials are asking a federal appeals court to uphold the state’s restrictions on medical cannabis advertising.
Washington, D.C. regulators are being sued by a group that wants to prevent medical cannabis businesses from opening close to schools.
California regulators issued an advisory about a recall of marijuana products due to inaccurate labeling that reports more cannabinoid content than it actually contains.
Ohio regulators filed proposed changes to marijuana rules.
Illinois regulators voted to add uterine fibroid and painful uterine fibroid as medical cannabis qualifying conditions.
Arkansas regulators approved the revocation of a medical cannabis business’s license.
A new South Dakota law is increasing medical cannabis business fees.
Vermont regulators posted a cannabis advertising assessment guide.
The Michigan Cannabis Regulatory Agency will hold a public meeting on Thursday.
Minnesota regulators will host a cannabis social equity verification workshop on Friday.
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Marijuana Moment is tracking more than 1,500 cannabis, psychedelics and drug policy bills in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon supporters pledging at least $25/month get access to our interactive maps, charts and hearing calendar so they don’t miss any developments.
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/ LOCAL
Dover, Delaware City Council members discussed proposed marijuana business rules.
/ INTERNATIONAL
The general secretary of Bolivia’s vice presidency discussed the country’s successful push to get the World Health Organization to launch a scientific review of the coca leaf.
The European Commission is being asked to investigate Italy’s move to ban hemp cultivation, production and marketing.
The UK Green Party’s election manifesto includes a plank endorsing drug legalization.
The Scottish Green Party is calling for drug decriminalization.
/ SCIENCE & HEALTH
A study of small-scale cannabis cultivators from 18 countries found that “profit motive for growing was often secondary to non-financial motives and most sold to a limited number of persons in their close social network.”
A study of mice found that “Δ8-THC blocked the development of experimentally induced arthritis by preventing both pathophysiological as well as functional effects of the disease model.”
/ BUSINESS
Stiiizy is asking a court to dismiss a lawsuit accusing it of selling hemp-derived products with excessive amounts of THC.
Metrc was awarded a cannabis track and trace contact with the Twenty-Nine Palms Band of Mission Indians, located within California.
Weedmaps posted data about New York marijuana consumers’ preferences.
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