Newsletter
House leaders push legal cannabis states on impaired driving (Newsletter: June 4, 2020)
VA gov cites marijuana decrim as racial justice move; USVI gov touts legal cannabis revenue; VT activist seeks high bailiff office
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/ TOP THINGS TO KNOW
House Transportation Committee leaders filed a bill requiring legal marijuana states—and only those states—to consider creating programs to “educate drivers on the risks associated with marijuana-impaired driving and to reduce injuries and deaths resulting from individuals driving motor vehicles while impaired by marijuana.”
Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam (D) cited a marijuana decriminalization bill he recently signed as an example of how the state is addressing racial inequities that have inspired recent protests of police violence against black Americans.
U.S. Virgin Islands Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. (D) touted marijuana legalization’s economic impact at a conference focused on boosting revenue for the territory. Cruise passengers and hotel guests would buy an estimated $43 million worth of cannabis every year, according to a projection commissioned by his office.
- “We need to get this measure done as quickly as possible in order to start impacting our economy in a very positive way.”
Dave Silberman is a Vermont marijuana legalization advocate who is running for a county elected office actually called “high bailiff.” It might sound funny, but he’s using his campaign to highlight a serious drug policy reform platform.
/ FEDERAL
The U.S. Department of Agriculture posted an updated list of approved hemp testing laboratories.
The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy designated 12 additional areas as High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas.
Sen. Cory Gardner (R-CO) said that the Senate Banking Committee is not a particularly favorable place to have marijuana legislation referred to.
/ STATES
California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s (D) budget is projecting declining marijuana sales due to the coronavirus pandemic. Separately, regulators are holding a cannabis business payroll tax compliance webinar on Thursday.
Louisiana lawmakers sent Gov. John Bel Edwards (D) a bill to regulate hemp and CBD.
Iowa lawmakers sent Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) a bill to set a per-person medical cannabis THC limit of 4.5 grams in 90 days.
The North Carolina House of Representatives approved a revised agriculture bill with controversial smokable hemp ban language removed.
Washington State regulators posted an overview of coronavirus-related policies for marijuana businesses.
Michigan regulators released a bulletin outlining the requirements for annual financial statements for medical cannabis businesses.
Oregon regulators approved marijuana violation stipulated settlement agreements.
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/ LOCAL
A Myrtle Beach, South Carolina City Council member said he would consider supporting a marijuana decriminalization proposal.
A security guard was shot and killed at an unlicensed Spring Valley, California marijuana dispensary.
/ SCIENCE & HEALTH
A study found that “data support the safety and effectiveness of [medical cannabis] as a complementary option for improving pain control, appetite and quality of life in [supportive cancer care].”
A study found that cannabis consumers “generally had low accuracy in identifying effective harm reduction techniques and low rates of utilizing effective harm reduction techniques, using them at the same rate overall as techniques without empirical support.”
/ ADVOCACY, OPINION & ANALYSIS
The National Cannabis Industry Association filed an amicus brief in a U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit case in which Harborside Health Center is challenging the 280E tax penalty on marijuana businesses.
The National Cannabis Roundtable released a statement about its member businesses’ efforts to combat injustice and inequality.
/ BUSINESS
Sundial Herbal Products has been ordered by a federal judge to stop distributing unapproved new drugs and misbranded drugs, including a hemp seed oil it claimed “suppresses the growth of cancer.”
FSD Pharma Inc. received Food and Drug Administration approval to submit an Investigational New Drug Application for the use of a substance to increase endogenous levels of endocannabinoids to treat patients with coronavirus.
Michigan dispensaries Pharmhouse Wellness,, The Botanical Co. and Om of Medicine are offering a 10 percent discount to customers convicted of marijuana-related felonies and a 5 percent discount to those convicted of marijuana-related misdemeanors.
Aurora Cannabis Inc. is selling its shares in Alcanna Inc.
/ CULTURE
Pornstar Nacho Vidal was arrested on manslaughter charges after another man died during a ritual involving psychedelic toad venom.
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