Newsletter
NJ lawmakers to put legal cannabis on ballot for voters to decide (Newsletter: November 19, 2019)
Congress schedules marijuana vote; Sanders pledges legal cannabis ‘in every state’; AOC backs drug decrim
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/ TOP THINGS TO KNOW
The House Judiciary Committee has officially scheduled a vote on a bill to deschedule marijuana and fund programs to repair the harms of the war on drugs for a vote this Wednesday, and Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) filed a new amendment to the legislation that addresses racially disproportionate enforcement and the need for equity in the cannabis industry.
New Jersey lawmakers are giving up on efforts to pass marijuana legalization during the lame duck session and instead filed referendum legislation to put the question before voters on the 2020 ballot.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), a presidential candidate, said he wants to “make marijuana legal in every state in the country.” Meanwhile, former Vice President Joe Biden (D) is facing a backlash over his comments on cannabis as a potential gateway drug from rival contenders Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) and Andrew Yang, as well as from Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR).
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) is calling for the decriminalization of possession of all drugs—a difference with her favored presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, who has said several times this year that he doesn’t favor decriminalizing drugs beyond marijuana.
/ FEDERAL
The U.S Supreme Court declined to take up an appeal of a forfeiture case involving head shops that allegedly sold synthetic cannabinoid products.
National Transportation Safety Board Vice Chairman Bruce Landsberg expressed concerns about the challenges of detecting marijuana-impaired driving.
Former Vice President Joe Biden (D), a presidential candidate, tweeted, “There is a lot of talk out there on where I stand when it comes to our marijuana laws. Here are the facts:” and added a graphic that lays out some of his positions.
Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ), a presidential candidate, spoke about his support for legalizing marijuana and expunging records.
Montana Gov. Steve Bullock (D), a presidential candidate, said that he supports medical cannabis and getting the federal government out of the way of state marijuana laws.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) tweeted, in response to former Vice President Joe Biden (D) saying marijuana could be a gateway drug, “It is not. Prohibition is a gateway to racist policing practices and mass incarceration, though.”
Former Rep. Gwen Graham (D-FL) tweeted, “Repeatedly Floridians vote overwhelmingly for constitutional amendments to protect our environment, allow medical marijuana, restore felony voting rights (to name a few) & Republican legislatures & Republican governors do whatever the hell they want.”
/ STATES
The Colorado Supreme Court unanimously ruled that people on probation can use medical cannabis unless there is evidence that doing so would undermine the goals of their sentence.
Indiana Senate Democrats said that a top priority for the 2020 session is to pass a marijuana decriminalization bill.
Washington State regulators banned vaping products containing vitamin E acetate.
Ohio regulators expanded a medical cannabis recall to include additional products over their “development using a non-compliant process.”
Nevada regulators suspended the license of a marijuana testing lab found to have reported inaccurate and misleading potency results.
Oklahoma regulators denied a public records request for a list of medical cannabis dispensary locations.
Florida regulators have not yet released an expected report on the state’s medical cannabis program. Separately, a representative filed a bill to add sickle cell disease as a medical marijuana qualifying condition.
The new chair of the Illinois Senate Revenue Committee said that one of her priorities is “ensuring cannabis revenue helps communities hurt by failed drug policies.”
The U.S. Virgin Islands’s medical cannabis program will likely be delayed due to contention about the confirmation of regulatory body members.
Minnesota regulators held a hemp listening session.
Here’s a look at New Mexico’s lax security regulations for medical cannabis businesses.
The South Dakota Department of Social Services launched a public service campaign about methamphetamine featuring the slogan, “Meth: We’re On It.”
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/ LOCAL
The Boston, Massachusetts City Council is expected to vote on a proposal to overhaul the approval process for marijuana businesses on Wednesday.
/ SCIENCE & HEALTH
A study found that recreational marijuana laws are “linked to decreased binge drinking prevalence among students age 21 and older” but are “associated with increased sedative misuse among minors.”
A study suggested that “ayahuasca may show potential as an intervention for suicidality.”
/ ADVOCACY, OPINION & ANALYSIS
Anti-marijuana organization Smart Colorado is floating potential amendments to cannabis banking legislation it wants the Senate to consider.
Members of the North Dakota Young Republicans voted to back a proposed marijuana legalization ballot measure.
MomsRising tweeted, “Marijuana, like alcohol and tobacco, does not belong as a federally scheduled substance under the Controlled Substances Act. Descheduling cannabis would permit states to establish their own marijuana regulations absent undue federal interference. #WeWantMORE”
Prohibitionist organization Smart Approaches to Marijuana praised former Vice President Joe Biden’s (D) comments about cannabis’s potentially being a gateway drug.
/ BUSINESS
Trulieve Cannabis Corp. reported $70.7 million in quarterly revenue.
Colorado retailers sold more than $155 million worth of marijuana products in September.
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Photo courtesy of Chris Wallis // Side Pocket Images.
