Aug 07 2023

$150 Million in Marijuana Sold in Massachusetts in July, $883 Million Year-to-Date

There was $150 million in legal marijuana purchased in Massachusetts in July, according to the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission.

The $150 million sold in July is just $1.8 million shy of the record-breaking $151.8 million sold in June. $131.9 million of this was purchased by recreational consumers, with $18.1 million purchased by medical marijuana patients. Sales include dried marijuana flower and marijuana concentrates (hash, oil, wax, etc.), as well as products containing marijuana such as topicals and edibles.

Massachusetts marijuana stores have now sold $883 million in marijuana and marijuana products so far in 2023, and $4.85 billion since the start of legal sales in late 2018. The $4.85 billion has resulted in $824 million in tax revenue, with year-to-date taxes standing at $150 million.
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Aug 07 2023

Study: Marijuana Use Manages Opioid Cravings, Reduces Unregulated Opioid Use

The use of marijuana significantly reduces the use of unregulated opioids, according to a new study.

The study, which can be found by clicking here, is being published in the September issue of the International Journal of Drug Policy. It was conducted by researchers at the British Columbia Centre on Substance Use, the University of British Columbia, the University of California and Simon Fraser University.

“Accumulating evidence has indicated that cannabis substitution is often used as a harm reduction strategy among people who use unregulated opioids (PWUO) and people living with chronic pain”, begins the study’s abstract. “We sought to investigate the association between cannabis use to manage opioid cravings and self-reported changes in opioid use among structurally marginalized PWUO.”
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Aug 05 2023

Minnesota: Second Tribal Marijuana Store Opens to Everyone 21+

Just two days after the first legal marijuana store in Minnesota opened their doors, a second outlet has opened their doors to everyone 21 and older. Both outlets are on tribal land.

As of August 1 in Minnesota those 21 and older are allowed to possess and cultivate marijuana for recreational purposes in Minnesota. Despite state-licensed marijuana stores not opening until 2025, two tribes have voted to allow marijuana sales sooner – Red Lake Nation and White Earth Nation.

Red Lake Nation’s marijuana store (NativeCare) opened their doors on August 1, with hundreds waiting in line despite heavy rain at times. On Thursday, White Earth Nation’s Waabigwan Mashkiki began selling recreational marijuana to everyone 21+, including nontribal members. The outlet was funded by a $6 million loan approved n 2021 by the White Earth Reservation Business Committee.
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Aug 05 2023

Jersey City Police Department Must Reinstate Officer Fired for Marijuana, Give Backpay

State officials ruled this week that the Jersey City Police Department must reinstate Norhan Mansour, an officer they fired for off-the-job marijuana use.

The decision is in alignment with an administrative law judge’s decision. Not only is the police department required to reinstate the officer, they must give him backpay for the entire time he was away from his position.

Not long after New Jersey legalized marijuana in 2021, Attorney General Matthew Platkin issued a memo clarifying that employees, including government positions like police officers, should not be fired or face disciplinary actions for testing positive for marijuana they use while not at work.
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Aug 04 2023

Washington State Launches Online Portal for Reimbursing Those With Drug Convictions

Washington State has launched a first of its kind online portal that allows those charged with drug possession prior to 2021 to request reimbursement for expenses associated with the charges.

Following a 2021 decision by the Washington State Supreme Court (Washington v. Blake) that effectively decriminalized the personal possession of all drugs, the state Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) has officially launched the Blake Refund Bureau website in order to facilitate reimbursements for those who were charged prior to the ruling. This will be done in coordination with city and county courts, clerks, public defenders, prosecutors and advocates.

“If you have a Blake-impacted criminal record, you must first have your Blake-related convictions vacated and refund eligibility determined by the court or courts where your convictions were issued,” says the AOC. “Once your convictions have been vacated, you can apply for reimbursements on your paid Blake-related financial obligations.”
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Aug 04 2023

Bill Allowing Marijuana Stores to Take State Tax Deductions Signed Into Law By Maine Governor

Maine Governor Janet Mills has signed into law legislation that is seen as a partial remedy to Internal Revenue Service (IRS) code 280E.

IRS code 280E explicitly prohibits businesses from taking tax deductions if they’re federally illegal, even if they’re legal under state law. This has placed a large burden on many state-legal marijuana stores, leading to states like New Jersey passing laws that allow for these businesses to take standard state-level deductions.

Under the new law, proposed by Senator Teresa Pierce, Maine will use a portion of the tax revenue marijuana stores send them as a means of making up for lost revenue resulting from tax deductions that will be available for “business expenses related to carrying on a trade or business as a registered caregiver, a registered dispensary or a manufacturing facility,” in addition to “a cannabis establishment or testing facility” as of January 1.
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Aug 04 2023

$140 Million in Legal Marijuana Sold in Illinois in July, Second Highest Ever

There was $140 million worth of marijuana sold legally in Illinois in the month of July.

This marks the highest sales month for the year, and the second highest since the start of legal sales in 2020.

According to the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation licensed marijuana stores sold $140,048,722 worth of marijuana in July. This includes dried marijuana flower as well as marijuana-infused products such as edibles and concentrates. This is a roughly $4 million increase from June.
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Aug 03 2023

Study: CBD Appears Safe and Effective for Treating Obesity-Induced Heart Disease

Cannabidiol (CBD) “appears to be relatively safe for the treatment of obesity-induced heart disease, as it has anti-inflammatory and partially antioxidative properties”, says newly published research.

The study “explored the potential protective influence of cannabidiol (CBD) on myocardial inflammation state, with a special focus on arachidonic acid (AA), and oxidative balance in lipid overload conditions”. Research was conducted at the Medical University of Bialystok.

The 7-week experiment was conducted on male rats receiving standard or high-fat diet (HFD) with intraperitoneal CBD injections for the last 14 days. Results “revealed that CBD increased n-3 PUFAs activity in phospholipid and triacylglycerol fractions, and decreased AA content in the HFD group, especially in the phospholipid pool.”
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Aug 03 2023

Missouri Officials Expunge Over 70,000 Marijuana Convictions, Including 10,000 Felonies

County officials in Missouri have expunged over 70,000 marijuana-related convictions since December.

This includes more than 10,000 felony charges, according to an update provided by NORML Board of Directors Member Dan Viets, who co-authored the 2022 initiative that legalized marijuana throughout the state.

Provisions in the law, which took effect on December 8, 2022, required officials to expunge all eligible marijuana-related misdemeanor convictions by June 8, 2023. Viets said that some counties had failed to make a “good faith effort” to meet the June deadline, indicating that advocates may seek an order from the Missouri Supreme Court to compel certain counties to comply with the mandate.
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Aug 03 2023

Ohio: Marijuana Legalization Will Be On This November’s Ballot

Voters in Ohio will have the opportunity this November to make their state the 24th to legalize recreational marijuana.

The Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol announced last week that the state has validated 123,367 signatures they submitted for their initiative to legalize marijuana. This put the group just 679 signatures short of the 124,046 signature requirement to put the initiative on the November ballot. However, under state law an initiative campaign who comes up short is given an additional 10 days to collect the needed signatures.

Today the group announced that they have submitted over 6,500 new signatures, nearly 10-times the amount needed.
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