Newsletter
Credit unions won’t be punished for cannabis accounts, regulator says (Newsletter: August 6, 2019)
Ohio GOP chair tells rep to resign for blaming shootings on marijuana; Psychedelics help depression & anxiety: study; Florida decrim bill
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/ TOP THINGS TO KNOW
The chairman of the National Credit Union Administration, a federal agency, said regulators won’t punish financial institutions just for working with marijuana businesses. He also suggested that descheduling cannabis would be one way to clarify ongoing uncertainty.
The chair of the Ohio Republican Party said that a GOP state lawmaker who tried to blame recent shootings in Dayton and El Paso in part on marijuana legalization should resign. The state attorney general also condemned the comments.
A Florida representative filed a bill to decriminalize marijuana possession for the 2020 session.
A scientific review found that “ayahuasca, psilocybin, and LSD consistently produced immediate and significant anti-depressant and anxiolytic effects that were endured for several months” and that there were “no persisting adverse effects.”
/ FEDERAL
Officials with the Department of Health and Human Services assured Utah Gov. Gary Herbert (R) that the state is not at risk of losing federal health grants over its plan to distribute medical cannabis through government agencies.
Sens. Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Rick Scott (R-FL) sent a letter urging President Trump to certify Colombia’s efforts in the war on drugs.
Rep. Mark Amodei (R-NV) discussed his view on marijuana banking.
Rep. Jason Crow (D-CO) plans to tour cannabis businesses during the August recess.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) tweeted, “We shouldn’t punish people for something that is no longer a crime in the state. Happy to see that people with cannabis misdemeanor convictions will have an opportunity to have these convictions removed, allowing them to seek housing and jobs more easily.”
Rep. Anthony Brindisi (D-NY) tweeted, “Hemp farming is booming in the Southern Tier, and Assemblywoman @DonnaLupardo and I saw that in action today at Bella Vista Farms. I’m working with #NY22 hemp farmers to find ways to navigate Farm Bill regulations and ensure they can contribute to our Upstate economy.”
/ STATES
Delaware Gov. John Carney (D) signed a bill extending marijuana decriminalization to juveniles.
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) said that “a lot of people start just innocently with recreational marijuana and it leads to addiction and other problems.”
Michigan’s attorney general is drafting legislation to amend the state’s marijuana legalization law, including to spell out penalties for certain violations.
Florida’s Senate president appointed new members to the Industrial Hemp Advisory Council.
A New Mexico judge ruled that regulators must grant medical cannabis cards to out-of-state patients.
Louisiana medical cannabis sales are expected to begin on Tuesday.
Oklahoma regulators are being sued over a decision to share medical cannabis patient data with law enforcement.
West Virginia regulators will begin accepting hemp license applications on September 1.
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/ LOCAL
Portland, Maine officials released proposed marijuana regulations.
/ INTERNATIONAL
A Mexican Senate committee chair is calling for marijuana legalization.
Brazil’s minister of citizenship is opposing a plan to allow medical cannabis cultivation.
A Philippine lawmaker filed a medical cannabis bill.
/ SCIENCE & HEALTH
A study found that “the opening of dispensaries actually decreases violent crime rates in above median income neighborhoods” and “non-marijuana drug-related crimes decrease within a half-mile of new dispensaries,” but that “vehicle break-ins increase up to a mile away from new dispensaries.”
A study concluded that syringe exchange program “openings decrease HIV diagnoses by up to 18.2 percent” but “increase rates of opioid-related mortality and hospitalizations, suggesting that needle exchanges alone may be less effective than other interventions at stimulating recovery.”
/ OPINION & ANALYSIS
The majority of the Cleveland Plain Dealer editorial board supports a local marijuana decriminalization proposal.
/ BUSINESS
A law firm is seeking plaintiffs for an investor lawsuit against Curaleaf Holdings, Inc. over actions leading to a recent Food and Drug Administration letter the company received regarding its marketing of CBD products.
The firm Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan launched a marijuana-focused litigation practice.
Here’s a look at how marijuana ads require prior approval by regulators in some jurisdictions.
/ CULTURE
Billy Ray Cyrus said the “Old Town Road” remix almost had a marijuana-related lyric but that record executives asked to have it changed.
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