Jan 16 2024

High Times Announces Winners of Massachusetts Cannabis Cup: People’s Choice Edition 2023

High Times has announced the winners of the High Times Cannabis Cup Massachusetts: People’s Choice Edition 2023.

High Times Cannabis Cups “showcase the best cannabis products around, and the ones that really stood out rose to the top”. The final results “are astounding”, says High Times, “and we’re proud to announce that Massachusetts is home to cannabis that’s better than ever.”

High Times says Massachusetts is home to one of the “most electrified and passionate crowds we’ve ever encountered among all Cannabis Cup events.”
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Jan 16 2024

Vermont House Passes Bill to Establish Overdose Prevention Centers

Legislation to fund overdose prevention centers has been passed by Vermont’s full House of Representatives.

Vermont State House.

House Bill 72, filed by State Representative Taylor Small along with 28 cosponsors, would establish a pilot program that would lead to the creation of several overdose prevention centers, sometimes referred to as safe injection sites. If the measure is approved by the Senate and signed into law (or allowed to become law without a signature) by Governor Phil Scott, Vermont would join Minnesota and Rhode Island as states with similar pilot programs.

Under the proposed law overdose prevention centers would be locations, staffed by medical professionals, where those addicted to illegal substances can legally use their drugs in a supervised environment. These centers would offer support and treatment services to those addicted to drugs.
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Jan 16 2024

Michigan: Record-Breaking $280 Million in Marijuana Sold in December, Over $3 Billion in 2023

Michigan marijuana stores sold more product in December than in any month prior.

According to the Michigan Cannabis Regulatory Agency, there was $276,732,645 worth of recreational marijuana sold in December, in addition to $3,177,042 worth of medical marijuana. The combined $279,909,688 is a new monthly record.

Total marijuana sales for 2023 ended at around $3.1 billion. Total recreational marijuana sales since the start of legal sales in December, 2019 now stands at $6.9 billion. This is in addition to the $1.6 billion in medical marijuana sold during the same period. This brings total marijuana sales over the past four years to round $8.5 billion.
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Jan 15 2024

WA House Committees Passes Bill to Alter Possession Limit for Marijuana-Infused Liquids

Legislation that would make changes to the state’s possession limit for some marijuana-infused products has been approved through its initial committee.

House Bill 1249, filed by State Representatives Chris Corry (R) and Kristine Reeves (D), has been given approval in a unanimous 11 to 0 vote through the House Committee on Regulated Substances & Gaming. The measure must now be passed through one more committee before it can be considered by the full House of Representatives.

Under Washington’s current marijuana law, those 21 and older can possess:
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Jan 15 2024

US House Resolution Filed to “Increase Equity Within Cannabis Policy and the Legal Cannabis Marketplace”

The RESPECT Resolution (H.R. 960) “Urging action to increase equity within cannabis policy and the legal cannabis marketplace”, has been filed by Representative Barbara Lee (D-CA).

The RESPECT (“Realizing Equitable & Sustainable Participation in Emerging Cannabis Trades) Resolution was filed in the US House of Representatives on Thursday, with the measure cosponsored by Congressmembers Alma Adams (NC), Janice “Jan” Schakowsky (IL), Henry C. “Hank” Johnson (GA), Earl Blumenauer (OR), James “Jim” McGovern (MA), Eleanor Norton (DC) and Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ).

Congressmember Lee in a press release says the resolution “aims to elevate the importance of equity within the legal cannabis marketplace, address disparities and proactively address and repair the most egregious effects of the War on Drugs on communities of color””
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Jan 15 2024

Arkansas Initiative Would Expand Medical Marijuana Program, Establish Federal Trigger for Recreational Legalization

An initiative that would significantly expand Arkansas’ medical marijuana program, while legalizing recreational marijuana if the federal government deschedules it, has been filed with the state.

The nonprofit political group Arkansans for Patient Access has officially filed the Arkansas Medical Cannabis Amendment of 2024 with Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin. The proposed constitutional amendment would allow medical marijuana patients to grow their own marijuana, while removing the list of qualifying medical marijuana conditions. This would allow physicians to recommend medical marijuana for any condition they deem necessary.

The initiative would allow patients to grow up to seven mature marijuana plants at a given time, as well as seven immature plants.
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Jan 15 2024

US Department of Health Secretary Confirms Agency In Talks With DEA About Moving Marijuana to Schedule III

The secretary of the United States Department of Health and Human Services  (HHS) has confirmed, for the first time, that their agency has recommended to the DEA that marijuana be rescheduled to Schedule III, while confirming they are in continuing talks on the issue.

In a recent interview with the New York Times, Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra says HHS has “communicated to them our position”, referencing the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). He says they’ve “put it all out there for them”, referencing a 252 page document that was recently released  publicly via a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.

Becerra confirms that the agency is requesting marijuana be moved to Schedule III, a considerable shift from its current Schedule I status. The move would effectively legalize medical marijuana for prescription use nationwide, while providing medical marijuana patients and businesses a plethora of legal protections.
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Jan 14 2024

WA Bill to Legalize Personal Marijuana Cultivation Scheduled for Public Hearing On January 16

Legislation that would legalize personal marijuana cultivation has been scheduled for a public hearing in the Washington State House of Representatives.

Washington remains one of the only legal marijuana states to not allow marijuana to be grown for personal use. House Bill 2194, filed by Representative Shelley Kloba with 12 cosponsors, would change this by legalizing marijuana cultivation for everyone 21 and older. The measure has now been scheduled for a public hearing in the House Committee on Regulated Substances & Gaming, a legally necessary state towards it becoming law. The hearing will take place Tuesday, January 16 at 4pm.

The measure would allow for the personal cultivation of up to six marijuana plants per person at a private residence. No more than 15 plants could be grown “at any one time on the premises of a single housing unit, regardless of the number of residents living on the premises of the housing unit.”
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Jan 14 2024

Study: Combining Opioids With Marijuana Can Reduce Opioid Dosage and Mitigate Opioid Toxicity in Hospice Patients

Combination medical marijuana and opioid therapy “showed statistically significant pain relief and may have the potential for reducing opioid dose and mitigating opioid toxicity”, states a new study.

The study is being published in the American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine, with the abstract published online ahead of print by the US National Library of Medicine. The research was conducted by researchers at Yale School of Medicine, Connecticut Hospice, The John D. Thompson Hospice Institute for Education, Yale-New Haven Hospital and Yale School of Public Health.

“Opioid therapy is critical for pain relief for most hospice patients but may be limited by adverse side effects”, states the study’s abstract. “Combining medical cannabis with opioids may help mitigate adverse effects while maintaining effective pain relief.”
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Jan 14 2024

Majority of Lawmakers Sponsoring Federal “Stop Pot Act” Are From North Carolina

The majority of those sponsoring the “Stop Pot Act” are from North Carolina.

Filed by North Carolina Congressmember Chuck Edwards in September, the Stop Pot Act would withhold federal funding from states and tribes that have legalized recreational marijuana. The measure was filed with just one cosponsor, with it since gaining three additional sponsors, bringing the total to five. Three of these five (60%) are from North Carolina, and all are Republican.

The proposed law would withhold 10% of federal highway funds from states and tribes that violate the federal Controlled Substances Act. Given marijuana is a Schedule I drug, this means that any state that allows legal marijuana sales would be violating the provisions of this proposal and would lose some federal funding. Despite having just five sponsors, the Stop Pot Act has more cosponsors than any other effort that would combat state marijuana laws, even though many Republican Congressmembers hold strong anti-marijuana stances.
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