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MS gov signs medical cannabis bill (Newsletter: February 3, 2022)
Marijuana banking gets initial House OK; Cannabis not on commerce secretary’s mind; Fed legalization vote demanded; MI psychedelics ballot measure
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/ TOP THINGS TO KNOW
The House of Representatives preliminarily approved marijuana banking amendment via a voice vote as part of an en bloc package with other amendments—with no debate—but a roll call was requested. That’s expected to take place on Thursday to make passage official.
Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves (R) signed a medical marijuana bill into law. In a statement, he reiterated his concerns with the reform but praised lawmakers for making “significant improvements” to earlier drafts.
Commerce Sec. Gina Raimondo said a reporter’s question about marijuana reform is “so far afield from anything that I am working on” and she doesn’t have “any updates” on President Joe Biden’s plans to follow through on his cannabis campaign pledges.
A bipartisan group of members of Congress—led by Rep. Marilyn Strickland (D-WA—sent a letter demanding that House leaders schedule a floor vote on a federal marijuana legalization bill.
Michigan activists filed a ballot initiative to legalize personal possession, cultivation and sharing of psychedelics while setting up a system for sales to people who have doctors’ recommendations.
A Congressional Black Caucus Foundation program named after the late Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) will host four fellows focused on “cannabis policy and social justice reforms” with $600,000 in funding from The Scotts Miracle-Gro Foundation’s Hawthorne Social Justice Fund.
Data from Missouri’s Departments of Labor and Health and Human Services indicate that nearly one out of ten jobs created in the state over the past year is in the medical marijuana industry, according to an analysis from the Missouri Medical Cannabis Trade Association.
/ FEDERAL
The Senate Small Business & Entrepreneurship Committee heard testimony from the Cato Institute on problems caused by strict marijuana licensing caps.
House Homeland Security Committee Republicans tweeted, “Even drugs like marijuana are being laced with lethal amounts of fentanyl. It’s time to protect Americans from the #BidenFentanylCrisis.”
A former Medicaid chief medical officer tweeted that there’s “there’s plenty of evidence” for psychedelic-based treatment.
Iowa Democratic Senate candidate Mike Franken tweeted, “We must remove cannabis as a Schedule 1 controlled substance, address those imprisoned for MJ, release banking restrictions, and legalize it at the Federal level.”
Louisiana Democratic Senate candidate Gary Chambers discussed his support for legalizing marijuana.
Ohio Democratic congressional candidate Nina Turner tweeted, “It is immoral that there are people serving time for simply having marijuana.”
Virginia Republican congressional candidate Heerak Christian Kim posted several videos of himself expressing concerns about marijuana legalization.
/ STATES
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) is proposing to direct more marijuana tax revenue to the Budget Stabilization Fund.
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) tweeted, “Colorado has always been a leader in Cannabis Entrepreneurship and through our Equity Licensee program we’ve been able to expand access to help entrepreneurs start their own business.” Separately, regulators issued a health and safety advisory about potentially unsafe levels of yeast and mold in marijuana products.
California’s treasurer tweeted about the advancement of a marijuana banking amendment in Congress, saying, “Thanks @RepPerlmutter for your resolve and commitment to get cash into the banks.”
Utah lawmakers sent Gov. Spencer Cox (R) a bill to provide protections to medical cannabis patients from being fired.
The Florida House minority policy chair tweeted, “Marijuana legalization is a policy issue related to criminal justice reform and healthcare access. Our Democratic Caucus is working [to] diligently put forward legislation to find a pathway to the legal use of marijuana.”
The South Dakota Senate Health and Human Services Committee rejected a bill to ban medical cannabis home cultivation.
The Virginia Senate Rehabilitation and Social Services Cannabis Subcommittee held a hearing on recreational marijuana sales legislation.
The Washington State Senate Health & Long Term Care Committee held a hearing on a bill to legalize psilocybin services, though the legislation will not get a vote this year.
The Maryland House Ways & Means Committee held a hearing on a bill to let medical cannabis companies deduct business expenses from state taxes.
South Carolina senators filed more than two dozen amendments to a medical cannabis bill being debated on the floor.
Oregon lawmakers filed legislation to steer money away from a services fund created by the voter-approved drug decriminalization law. Separately, legislators are considering several bills aimed at combating illegal marijuana cultivation.
A Connecticut Department of Public Health spokesperson said that a prior report of fentanyl-laced marijuana was likely due to “accidental contamination and an isolated incident.”
The director of New York’s Office of Cannabis Management said regulators are “moving as fast as humanly possible” and are aiming to open up recreational marijuana licensing by the end of this year.
Arkansas regulators are being sued over alleged racial bias in their medical cannabis business license decisionmaking.
A Massachusetts regulator said she’s focused on preventing marijuana use by youth.
Ohio regulators will consider petitions to add new medical cannabis qualifying conditions on Wednesday.
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/ LOCAL
San Marcos, Texas activists launched a signature gathering drive to place a marijuana decriminalization measure on the local ballot.
/ INTERNATIONAL
Former Israeli Prime Ministers Edud Olmert and Ehud Barak spoke about their work for cannabis companies and support for legalization.
The leader of Canada’s New Democratic Party is supporting a drug decriminalization bill.
A Chilean proposal to legalize cannabis got the third-most signatures on a digital platform for an upcoming Constitutional Convention.
A Mexican senator filed legislation to provide amnesty for people with prior marijuana convictions.
/ SCIENCE & HEALTH
A review concluded that “cannabinoids have been shown to decrease the severity of certain symptoms related to traumatic brain injury as well as posttraumatic stress disorder” and “can modulate the body’s endocannabinoid system, which can play an important role in bone homeostasis.”
A study found that “medical cannabis can be an effective and safe treatment for [benign essential blepharospasm] as a second line after BTX-A injections when used for 3 months.”
/ ADVOCACY, OPINION & ANALYSIS
The Tennessee Democratic Party tweeted, “With Republicans in control, Tennessee will never legalize marijuana. Think about that the next time you’re at the ballot box! (We want it to be fully legalized, btw).”
The Hawaii Cannabis Industry Association published a report calling for regulatory reforms.
/ BUSINESS
MedMen filed a court notice saying it intends to subpoena New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s (D) office in a legal dispute with Ascend Wellness Holdings.
Verano Holdings Corp. exercised its option to upsize its credit facility to draw an additional $100 million.
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