Newsletter
Cannabis sales OK on Thanksgiving—but not alcohol, CT says (Newsletter: November 23, 2023)
Colombian marijuana vote; USVI cannabis expungements; Study: Legalization doesn’t increase teen use; RI equity definition
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/ TOP THINGS TO KNOW
The Colombian Senate First Committee approved a marijuana legalization bill that has already been passed by the Chamber of Representatives. It now heads to the Senate floor.
U.S. Virgin Islands Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. (D) is encouraging people to “proactively” request expungements for prior marijuana convictions. Meanwhile, the territory’s government is facing criticism over its slow rollout of cannabis legalization implementation.
The Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection issued bulletins saying that marijuana dispensaries are allowed to open on Thanksgiving, but that liquor stores must close for the holiday.
A new study found “no statistically significant differences” in “the prevalence of past 30-day cannabis use before and after legalization among adolescents.”
The Rhode Island Cannabis Control Commission is requesting data from other state agencies to help determine what constitutes a “disproportionately impacted area” for awarding marijuana social equity business licenses.
/ FEDERAL
Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) sent a letter urging Attorney General Merrick Garland to release information about a program funded by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy that “pays AT&T to provide all federal, state, local, and Tribal law enforcement agencies the ability to request often-warrantless searches of trillions of domestic phone records.”
Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ) sent a letter demanding that White House Office of National Drug Control Policy Director Rahul Gupta explain the existence of a program that gives law enforcement access to Americans’ phone records.
Rep. Greg Casar (D-TX) tweeted about a reduction in marijuana arrests following San Marcos, Texas voters’ approval of a decriminalization initiative, saying, “When Texans work together to change policy at the local level, real change can be accomplished. Your vote matters!”
/ STATES
The New York Court of Appeals rejected an argument that provisions of the marijuana legalization law preventing searches based on the odor of marijuana should be made retroactive to apply to incidents from before it was enacted.
A Pennsylvania judge ordered regulators to release data about medical cannabis certifications issued by individual doctors.
Louisiana regulators filed revised hemp rules.
Mississippi regulators filed revised medical cannabis rules.
Oregon regulators published a guide list for pesticides and cannabis.
The Maryland Department of Legislative Services published analyses of cannabis issues that lawmakers may consider in 2024.
A Missouri man denied a refund for his marijuana microbusiness license application fee said he hopes there can be litigation against regulators over the issue.
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/ LOCAL
Columbus and Franklin County, Ohio police said they will continue to refuse to hire people who consume marijuana despite the state’s legalization law.
The Prince George’s County, Maryland Council rejected a proposal to enact stricter geographic limitations on where marijuana businesses can be located.
/ INTERNATIONAL
Biel and Bern, Switzerland launched marijuana legalization pilot projects.
A Japanese health ministry panel moved to ban the synthetic cannabinoid HHCH.
/ SCIENCE & HEALTH
A study concluded that “a conservative examination of the results did not support the hypothesis that Michigan’s legalization of recreational marijuana and Ohio’s legalization of medical marijuana increased marijuana [operating a vehicle while impaired] arrests in Ohio.”
/ BUSINESS
Indiva Limited reported quarterly net revenue of C$9.8 million and a comprehensive loss of C$902,200.
The Cannabist Company Holdings Inc. launched a partnership with vaporizer company Airo Brands.
MariMed reportedly lost $646,000 by falling for email fraud.
Carnival instituted a lifetime ban on a woman after she allegedly tried to board a cruise ship with CBD gummies.
/ CULTURE
Xzibit discussed his new cannabis podcast.
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Photo courtesy of Mike Latimer.
