Newsletter
New Jersey lawmakers approve legal cannabis bill (Newsletter: Nov. 27, 2018)
Study: Marijuana and beer ingredient are related; Connecticut lawmakers plan legal cannabis focus; South Korea approves medical cannabis
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/ TOP THINGS TO KNOW
Key New Jersey Senate and Assembly committees approved a marijuana legalization bill. They also voted to pass separate legislation expanding the state’s medical cannabis program and creating a process for expunging marijuana convictions.
Prior to the vote, the panels took about four hours of testimony from supporters and opponents, including former U.S. Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI), who only reluctantly answered a question about whether he wants to prohibit alcohol.
A review of marijuana’s evolution and classification over time shows that beer ingredient hops is related to cannabis, and that the two genetically diverged about 28 million years ago.
/ FEDERAL
President Trump participated in a roundtable meeting about criminal justice reform legislation.
Comptroller of the Currency Joseph Otting said last month that he is “hopeful there’s enough momentum in that direction” toward solving marijuana businesses’ banking access issues and that forcing them to operate in cash is “generally not healthy.”
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit upheld the dismissal of a Montana medical cannabis patient’s lawsuit against his former employer, Charter Communications, LLC.
Former Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) reacted to the recent endorsement of marijuana legalization by his relative Rep. Joe Kennedy III (D-MA).
/ STATES
Connecticut Democratic lawmakers are including marijuana legalization in a list of so-called “Big Five” issues they plan to prioritize in 2019.
New Mexico Gov.-elect Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) will direct a legal review of employment issues faced by medical cannabis patients.
The Michigan State Board of Canvassers certified election results, meaning that the voter-approved marijuana legalization measure will take effect on December 6.
Utah lawmakers held a hearing on proposed medical cannabis compromise legislation. Separately, the state’s lieutenant governor said there’s “no question” the medical marijuana ballot measure drove increased turnout in the midterm election.
An Idaho representative who is a candidate for speaker of the House opposes marijuana legalization even though his business provides security services to an Oregon dispensary.
Indiana lawmakers held a meeting to discuss marijuana reform legislation.
A North Carolina representative is planning to discuss marijuana legalization with other lawmakers this week.
Here’s a look at the prospects for Texas marijuana reform in 2019.
Arkansas regulators are considering allegations of improprieties by medical cannabis cultivation licensees submitted by unsuccessful competitors.
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/ LOCAL
The Denver, Colorado City Council approved a proposal to create a pilot project for safe consumption facilities for illegal drugs.
The newly elected district attorney in Dallas County, Texas said he will not prosecute first-time marijuana offenders and that cannabis “is not a dangerous drug” and “is not a gateway drug.”
/ INTERNATIONAL
South Korean lawmakers approved medical cannabis.
Thailand Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha is planning to use a controversial constitutional provision that gives him unilateral authority on national order or security issues to settle a dispute about cannabis patenting.
New Zealand’s justice minister is considering holding a referendum on marijuana reform.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said his government will “act as uncompromisingly against drug dealers who steal our children’s health as we do against terrorist organizations who send young people to death. In our eyes, there is no difference between giving young people guns and handing them drugs.”
Government researchers in India are developing cannabis medicines.
Israeli and Jamaican officials met to discuss marijuana.
/ ADVOCACY
The Democratic Party of New Mexico tweeted, “There are 58,000 New Mexicans enrolled in the our medical marijuana program, but our state offers no protections for workers who might be discriminated again — that must change.”
Conservative commentator Michelle Malkin is endorsing federal criminal justice reform legislation.
Former Drug Policy Alliance Executive Director Ethan Nadelmann says it is time to decriminalize drugs.
/ SCIENCE & HEALTH
A study found that “marijuana use, deviant behavior, and risk preferences among U.S. adolescents declined from 2002 to 2014″ but that “associations have remained stable, with marijuana use positively associated with deviant behaviors and risk preferences.”
/ OPINION & ANALYSIS
The Bismarck Tribune editorial board is calling on North Dakota lawmakers to decriminalize marijuana.
The Tulsa World editorial board is pushing for transparency in medical cannabis regulations.
/ BUSINESS
4Front Holdings, LLC and Cannex Capital Holdings Inc. are merging and will trade on the Canadian Securities Exchange.
GW Pharmaceuticals announced positive results in a Phase 3 trial of its CBD drug Epidiolex. The company’s stock rose.
Wright-Patt Credit Union says it will offer “limited banking services” to Ohio medical cannabis businesses.
/ CULTURE
Modest Mouse drummer Jeremiah Green spoke about using medical cannabis for depression.
Actress Amanda Bynes spoke about her past consumption of marijuana and other drugs.
Snopes felt the need to debunk a fake image of astronaut Chris Hadfield appearing to hold a bag of marijuana aboard the International Space Station.
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Photo courtesy of Chris Wallis // Side Pocket Images.
