Over 55,000 marijuana convictions have been automatically sealed (hidden) from people’s criminal history in Minnesota.

“Criminal history records that qualify for automatic expungement under the Adult-Use Cannabis Act [approved by voters in 2023] are no longer visible to the public in the Minnesota Criminal History System (CHS)”, according to a press release from the Department of Public Safety’s Office of Communications. “The Minnesota Department of Public Safety Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) has expunged (also referred to as sealing) 57,780 records in CHS almost three months ahead of schedule.”

The Minnesota Judicial Branch determined that just 213 records should not be expunged.
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The Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act (CAOA) has received a committee assignment in the US Senate.

The CAOA was filed on May 1 by a coalition of Democrats, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. It has now received its first committee assignment, the Senate Finance Committee. which is chaired by Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR), who is cosponsoring the measure.

The CAOA would require the federal government to remove marijuana as a controlled substance within 180 days of the bill’s passage, while also placing a federal excise tax on legal marijuana sales; the tax would start at 5% and rise to 12.5% by the fifth year. The proposal would also establish federal safety and regulatory standards for legal marijuana, including establishing a Center for Cannabis Products within the FDA, tasked with regulating “the production, labeling, distribution, sales and other manufacturing and retail elements of the cannabis industry”.
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Alaska’s full House of Representatives has advanced a measure that would alter the state’s tax rate for licensed recreational marijuana sales.

On Friday, the Alaska House of Representatives voted to change the state’s $50 per ounce marijuana tax to a 7% sales tax via the passage of House Bill 119. The measure —approved overwhelmingly 36 to 3— will now be sent to the state’s Senate. If approved in the Senate, it will be sent to Governor Mike Dunleavy.

HB 119 would establish a 7% statewide tax on licensed marijuana sales, making it Alaska’s first statewide sales tax. Under current law, marijuana is taxed at $50 per ounce.
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A Republican lawmaker from North Carolina plans to refile federal legislation next year designed to withhold funds from states and tribes that have legalized marijuana.

The Stop Pot Act was filed in September by Representative Chuck Edwards (R-NC). Initially filed without any cosponsors, the measure currently has four, all Republican. The proposed law would withhold 10% of the federal highway funds a state receives if they allow legal marijuana sales.

Recently a spokesperson for Rick Crawford, Chair of the House Subcommittee on Highways and Transit, said the Stop Pot Act “will not receive committee consideration this year”, indicating that it is effectively dead for this legislative session (which runs January 2023 to December 2024).
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Vermont’s full legislature has approved legislation to establish the “Psychedelic Therapy Advisory Working Group”.

Senate Bill 114 received final approval today from the state legislature, sending the bill to Governor Phil Scott’s desk. Although Governor Scott may veto the measure—as he recently did with a bill permitting marijuana sales—the legislature could override the veto with a two-thirds majority vote.”

The proposed law would establish the Psychedelic Therapy Advisory Working Group “to examine the use of psychedelics to improve physical and mental health and to make findings and recommendations regarding the advisability of the establishment of a State program similar to other jurisdictions to permit health care providers to administer psychedelics in a therapeutic setting and the impact on public health of allowing individuals to legally access psychedelics under State law.”
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Despite the confirmation nearly two weeks ago that the DEA is rescheduling marijuana to Schedule III, both President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have remained notably silent on the matter.

The DEA’s decision to reschedule marijuana followed a recommendation from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which concluded a nearly year-long review initiated by a 2022 executive order from President Biden. Despite Biden prompting this review, both he and Vice President Harris have maintained a notable silence on the matter.

Neither Biden nor Harris have issued any social media posts, press releases, or official statements, despite the significant potential implications of the DEA’s decision legally and politically.

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Today, DEA Administrator Anne Milgram announced the release of the 2024 National Drug Threat Assessment (NDTA). In it the agency warns about the shift away from plant-based drugs to synthetic drugs.

The NDTA is the DEA’s “comprehensive strategic assessment of illicit drug threats and trafficking trends endangering the United States.”

In a press release announcing the new assessment, DEA Administrator Anne Milgram says that “The shift from plant-based drugs, like heroin and cocaine, to synthetic, chemical-based drugs, like fentanyl and methamphetamine, has resulted in the most dangerous and deadly drug crisis the United States has ever faced.”
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Vermont’s Legislature has given final approval to House Bill 72, which “proposes several provisions relating to harm-reduction and criminal justice responses to drug use.”

The proposal was given approval by the Senate on May 2 by a vote of 21 to 8, with the House of Representatives voting on Tuesday to give the measure final approval. The vote in the House was 96 to 35. The proposal will now be sent to Governor Phil Scott, who says he will veto the measure, just as he vetoed a recent bill that would have allowed legal marijuana sales.

If Governor Scott does veto the measure, the legislature could override it with a 2/3rds majority. The measure was passed with over 70% support in both chambers, indicating that there may be enough support to do so.
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The Colorado Legislature has overwhelmingly approved a bill designed to “address efficiency in the regulation of existing marijuana licensees.”

Senate Bill 76 was approved by the Senate on April 29 with a 33 to 1 vote. On May 7, the House of Representatives passed the bill 52 to 9, incorporating minor amendments. Following this, the Senate concurred with the House amendments on May 8 by a vote of 33 to 1. The bill now proceeds to Governor Jared Polis, who is expected to sign it into law.

Once enacted, the measure will incorporate a series of changes to the regulation of marijuana businesses, including:
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