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DE gov allows cannabis legalization to take effect (Newsletter: April 24, 2023)
Booker: “resurrect” SAFE Banking; Marijuana & guns bill in Congress; WA employment protections; CO psychedelics; TX decrim vote; NJ homegrow
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/ TOP THINGS TO KNOW
Delaware Gov. John Carney (D) is allowing marijuana legalization and regulation bills to take effect without his signature. He vetoed a bill to legalize cannabis last year, but the new legislation passed with more than enough support to potentially override him.
Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) said lawmakers are working to “resurrect” a package of marijuana reform legislation from last session, acknowledging that failure to advance a banking fix for the industry “literally means that hundreds of businesses go out of business.”
Rep. Brian Mast (R-FL) filed a bill to repeal the federal law that blocks people who consume marijuana in accordance with state laws from purchasing and possessing guns.
Washington State lawmakers sent Gov. Jay Inslee (D) a bill to protect job applicants from anti-marijuana discrimination during the hiring process.
The Colorado Senate Finance Committee amended and approved a bill to regulate psychedelics under a voter-approved legalization law.
The Texas House of Representatives will vote on a bill to decriminalize marijuana and create a process for expunging cannabis conviction records this week.
The Oregon Health Authority awarded the nation’s first-ever state-issued psilocybin testing laboratory license.
New Jersey’s Senate president is considering changes to the state’s marijuana rules one year after the launch of the legal recreational market—including allowing limited home cultivation, at least for some medical cannabis patients.
/ FEDERAL
President Joe Biden and Colombian President Gustavo Petro committed during a meeting to “a holistic approach to address the harmful impacts of drug use and drug trafficking on both our peoples’ health, safety, the environment, the economy, rule of law, and the strength and transparency of democratic institutions.”
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke cited President Joe Biden’s mass marijuana proclamation as an example of how clemency can “address outdated federal criminal policies, particularly those that disproportionately caused harm to communities of color.”
The U.S. was elected president of the American Sports Council and will serve on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s Executive Committee for a period of two years.
Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-CO) tweeted, “Colorado pioneered one of the most successful legal cannabis markets – and the federal government should follow our lead.”
Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND) and Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) discussed the prospects for cannabis banking legislation.
Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) tweeted, “In NV, legal cannabis small businesses have created jobs & boosted our economy, but they still lack access to basic banking services & federal resources.”
Rep. Dave Joyce (R-OH) discussed the prospects for federal marijuana reform.
Rep. Troy Carter (D-LA) tweeted photos of himself attending a cannabis festival, saying, “We need #CannabisReform and I’m working in Congress and with advocates from #LA02 to make it happen.”
Former Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) said at a prohibitionist conference that it’s “become an article of faith of the Democrats to be for commercialization of marijuana, and that saddens me.”
Former Rep. Greg Walden (R-OR) authored an op-ed calling on Congress to pass federal marijuana reform legislation.
/ STATES
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) is directing the National Guard and Highway Patrol to crack down on illegal drug sellers in San Francisco.
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) tweeted, “We’re working hard to make sure Illinois’ cannabis industry is the most equitable and prosperous in the nation.”
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) tweeted, “Happy canni-versary, New Jersey! Adult-use marijuana sales began one year ago today. We will continue to support the development of a robust, thriving, and diverse industry.”
A former Michigan House speaker is expected to plead guilty on Tuesday in a federal bribery case concerning the state’s marijuana business licensing process.
Wisconsin’s Senate minority leader tweeted, “It’s not a matter of if #cannabis will be legal in Wisconsin.. it’s a matter of when and how.” She also tweeted, “Legalizing #cannabis is not about red party or blue party… it’s about green opportunity for #Wisconsin.”
Pennsylvania lawmakers filed four marijuana reform bills and resolutions.
A North Carolina senator said he is “pretty confident” a medical cannabis bill can pass this session.
Louisiana regulators filed proposed revisions to medical cannabis rules.
Nevada regulators issued a health and safety bulletin about cannabis products that were treated with an unapproved pesticide.
Minnesota regulators issued a warning about mold growing in bottles of THC syrup.
New York’s Health Department commissioned a survey to gauge public support for a ban on the sale of tobacco products.
The Tennessee Medical Cannabis Commission will meet on Monday.
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/ LOCAL
College Station, Texas activists are collecting signatures in support of a local marijuana decriminalization measure.
Kansas City, Missouri’s mayor and City Council issued a 4/20 proclamation recognizing the efforts of a local cannabis activist.
Los Angeles, California officials posted a new map of licensed cannabis retailers.
/ INTERNATIONAL
Saint Kitts and Nevis’s agriculture minister announced on 4/20 that the government authorized the full activation of a cannabis law.
Russia’s permanent representative to international organizations in Vienna tweeted, “The Government of Germany elaborated a plan of legalisation of #cannabis for personal consumption. #Berlin ignores the #UN conventions which envisage the use of cannabis exclusively for scientific and medical, but not ‘recreational’purposes. Yet another case of legal nihilism.”
The Canadian government is funding a cannabis and mental health project by the Schizophrenia Society of Canada.
/ SCIENCE & HEALTH
A study found that “users who access cannabis through a legal mechanism are more preferred as neighbors than those who do not” indicating that “regulation, by providing legal access, increases the social acceptance of cannabis users.”
A study found that “peripherally injected cannabidiol reduces neuropathic pain in mice.”
/ ADVOCACY, OPINION & ANALYSIS
A poll found that Britons support legalizing cannabis, 51 percent to 34 percent.
The Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies’s executive director and president swapped roles for unknown reasons.
/ BUSINESS
TerrAscend Corp. provided details of a proposed reorganization plan that if approved will allow it to trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
/ CULTURE
The former executive director of the National Basketball Players Association, who is a board member of Cresco Labs, said NBA players should be a major investment source for the cannabis industry under the league’s new rules.
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