Connect with us

Newsletter

First cannabis bill of new Congress focuses on guns (Newsletter: January 17, 2023)

Published

on

Biden talks marijuana pardons at MLK Day event; NH psychedelics legalization bill; VA lawmakers’ cannabis focus for 2023

Subscribe to receive Marijuana Moment’s newsletter in your inbox every weekday morning. It’s the best way to make sure you know which cannabis stories are shaping the day.

Get our daily newsletter.

Your support makes Marijuana Moment possible…

Before you dig into today’s cannabis news, I wanted you to know you can keep this resource free and published daily by subscribing to Marijuana Moment on Patreon. We’re a small independent publication diving deep into the cannabis world and rely on readers like you to keep going.

Join us at https://www.patreon.com/marijuanamoment

/ TOP THINGS TO KNOW

President Joe Biden used an appearance at a Martin Luther King Jr. Day breakfast to tout his mass marijuana pardons, saying that the move is part of an “equal justice” agenda.

Reps. Alex Mooney (R-WV), Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Brian Mast (R-FL) introduced the first marijuana reform bill of the new Congress—a gun rights measure for medical cannabis patients.

A New Hampshire representative filed a bill to legalize psychedelics like LSD, psilocybin and mescaline.

Virginia lawmakers are considering bills on allowing marijuana sales and enacting regulations for hemp-derived products like delta-8 THC and CBD this session. The Senate majority leader said it’s “weird” that it is legal to possess cannabis but not to sell it.

/ FEDERAL

White House Office of National Drug Control Policy Director Rahul Gupta discussed the importance of harm reduction.

Reps. Dave Joyce (R-OH) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) spoke about the prospects for advancing cannabis banking legislation with expungements provisions attached.

/ STATES

Washington, D.C.’s attorney general criticized Congress for interfering with the city’s marijuana laws.

Florida’s Senate president appointed two lawmakers to the Industrial Hemp Advisory Council.

Hawaii’s Senate majority leader said that “examining the state’s medical marijuana industry and other potential agricultural revenue streams that will promote diversity within Hawaii’s economy” is one of the priorities for the new session.

The Connecticut legislature’s General Law Committee will consider several cannabis and hemp bills on Tuesday. Separately, a representative introduced legislation to require 16- and 17-year-olds seeking driver’s licenses to complete a course about marijuana-impaired driving.

A South Carolina representative tweeted, “In #SouthCarolina politicians literally discuss how bad marijuana is and why they will not legalize it while at the exact moment smoking cigarettes in one hand and having a whiskey in the other hand.”

A New Jersey senator tweeted that it is “time to act” against unregulated hemp-derived products.

A New York senator tweeted about his support for the Asian Cannabis Roundtable.

Texas regulators are accepting applications for additional medical cannabis dispensary licenses.

Massachusetts regulators clashed over a new state curriculum on marijuana-impaired driving.

Alabama regulators provided a timeline for issuing medical cannabis business licenses.

Oklahoma officials released updated medical cannabis revenue numbers.

Utah regulators posted an update on the medical cannabis program.


Marijuana Moment is tracking hundreds of 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.

Learn more about our marijuana bill tracker and become a supporter on Patreon to get access.

/ LOCAL

A Charles Town, West Virginia City Council member is pushing to decriminalize marijuana.

/ INTERNATIONAL

Luxembourg’s health minister spoke about plans for cannabis legislation.

The U.S. trial of a former Mexican secretary of public security who is charged with accepting bribes from a drug cartel begins this week.

Irish lawmakers launched a podcast about drugs.

/ SCIENCE & HEALTH

A study found that “about 30% of the sample was able to discontinue the use of prescription medications because of cannabis.”

/ ADVOCACY, OPINION & ANALYSIS

The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee tweeted, “Republicans have been blocking commonsense cannabis legalization for years [in Minnesota]. Now that Dems have complete control of the legislature, they’ll be able to take up the issue!”

/ BUSINESS

Tilray is laying off workers at a medical cannabis production facility in Cantanhede, Portugal.

/ CULTURE

Bryan Cranston joked about Seth Rogen being high at the Golden Globes.

Make sure to subscribe to get Marijuana Moment’s daily dispatch in your inbox.

Get our daily newsletter.

Marijuana Moment is made possible with support from readers. If you rely on our cannabis advocacy journalism to stay informed, please consider a monthly Patreon pledge.
Become a patron at Patreon!

Tom Angell is the editor of Marijuana Moment. A 20-year veteran in the cannabis law reform movement, he covers the policy and politics of marijuana. Separately, he founded the nonprofit Marijuana Majority. Previously he reported for Marijuana.com and MassRoots, and handled media relations and campaigns for Law Enforcement Against Prohibition and Students for Sensible Drug Policy.

Advertisement

Marijuana News In Your Inbox

Get our daily newsletter.

Support Marijuana Moment

Marijuana News In Your Inbox

 

Get our daily newsletter.