Jun 17 2024

A Breakdown of the Five Statewide Marijuana Initiatives Up for Consideration this November

The November election is less than five months away, with proponents of marijuana law reform having a lot to pay attention to.

Recreational marijuana is currently legal in 24 states, with medical marijuana legal in 38. Both of those numbers may climb higher following this November’s election, with three states voting to legalize recreational marijuana, one state set to vote on legalizing medical marijuana, and one set to vote on greatly expanding their medical marijuana law while establishing a federal trigger for recreational legalization.

Below is a look at these five states and their marijuana initiatives.
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Jun 17 2024

New Jersey Assembly Health Committee Approves Bill to Legalize Access to Medical Psilocybin

Legislation that would legalize the therapeutic use of psilocybin mushrooms has been given approval by a key Assembly committee.

The Assembly Health Committee passed Assembly Bill 3852 today, moving it along in the legislative process. The move comes a little over a week after the Senate Heath Committee voted to approve a companion measure.

Initially devised as a way to legalize the personal use of psilocybin for everyone 21 and older, the measure was amended to apply exclusively to the medical/therapeutic use of the substance.
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Jun 17 2024

Pennsylvania: New Bipartisan Bill Aims to Legalize Recreational Marijuana and Expunge Past Convictions

Bipartisan legislation that would make Pennsylvania the 25th state to legalize recreational marijuana will soon be unveiled.

Filed by State Representatives Emily Kinkead and Aaron Kaufer, House Bill 2500 would establish a legal framework for the recreational sale of marijuana, prioritizing licensing for disadvantaged groups. It also seeks to expunge past criminal charges related to marijuana distribution.

“We know across the board that having marijuana be illegal has done only harm in our communities,” Kinkead told WESA, a local NPR affiliate. “And we’re recognizing that it has medicinal properties, [and] the world has not ended in all the states that have legalized it recreationally.”
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Jun 16 2024

Maryland Governor to Issue 175,000 Marijuana Pardons

Maryland Governor Wes Moore plans to pardon over 175,000 convictions for the personal possession of marijuana and marijuana paraphernalia.

Governor Moore is set to enact one of the country’s most extensive clemency measures for marijuana-related offenses on Monday via an executive order. This action aims to address the social and economic injustices that disproportionately affect individuals of color.

“I’m ecstatic that we have a real opportunity with what I’m signing to right a lot of historical wrongs,” Governor Moore told the Washington Post. “If you want to be able to create inclusive economic growth, it means you have to start removing these barriers that continue to disproportionately sit on communities of color.”
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Jun 15 2024

Arizona Legislature Approves Bill to Legalize Psilocybin Therapy Centers, Sending it to Governor Hobbs

The Arizona Legislature has given approval to legislation legalizing access to psilocybin mushrooms, sending the bill to Governor Katie Hobbs.

Dried psilocybin mushrooms.

By a vote of 42 to 16, the Arizona House has passed Senate Bill 1570, approximately 3.5 months after it was passed by the Senate with a vote of 24 to 4. The measure, filed by Senator Jarrett Keohokalole (D), now heads to Governor Hobbs.

Once enacted, the measure will legalize psilocybin therapy centers where individuals can legally consume psilocybin in a medical, supervised setting with trained staff constantly available. Licensing for these centers will be handled by the Department of Human Services (DHS). Additionally, an Arizona Psilocybin Advisory Board will be established under the bill, tasked with overseeing training criteria for those working at service centers and recommending potential law changes to lawmakers.
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Jun 15 2024

Public Comment Period on DEA’s Marijuana Rescheduling Proposal Nears Halfway Point, Nearly 20,000 Comments Submitted

It’s been nearly a month since the DEA officially submitted their marijuana rescheduling proposal in the Federal Register, launching a 60-day public comment period.

With the halfway point just a week away, approximately 18,000 comments have been submitted on the DEA’s proposal to move marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act. This change would make marijuana’s compounds eligible for prescription nationwide once they receive regulatory approval.

Of the nearly 18,000 comments submitted, just over half advocate for the DEA to deschedule marijuana entirely, rather than simply rescheduling it. The roughly 51% in favor of descheduling has remained consistent since before the 10,000-comment mark.
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Jun 14 2024

North Carolina Senate Judiciary Committee Passes House-Backed Bill to Regulate Kratom and Hemp Products

North Carolina’s Senate Judiciary Committee has passed a bill that would establish a regulatory and licensing system for both kratom and products made from hemp.

Hemp (left) and kratom (right).

The House voted 110 to 0 yesterday to pass Approval of House Bill 563 through the Senate Judiciary Committee comes roughly eight months after the measure was passed by the House of Representatives in a unanimous 110 to 0 vote. Filed by State Representative Jeffrey McNeeley along with a bipartisan coalition of 10 other lawmakers, the measure will be sent to Governor Roy Cooper if it’s passed by the full Senate.

According to its official summary, House Bill 563 would:
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Jun 14 2024

New Hampshire Bill to Allow Medical Marijuana for Any Condition Sent to Governor Sununu

Legislation to allow medical marijuana for any condition a physician deems necessary has been given final approval by the New Hampshire Legislature, and will now be sent to Governor Chris Sununu.

House Bill 1278 has been passed by both the House and Senate after a conference committee concurred on amendments made in the Senate. The measure will now be sent to Governor Chris Sununu, who is expected to sign it into law.

Filed by State Representative Wendy Thomas, the proposal will repeal the state’s list of qualifying medical marijuana conditions and replace it with a provision allowing medical marijuana for “any debilitating or terminal medical condition or symptom for which the potential benefits of using therapeutic cannabis would, in the provider’s clinical opinion, likely outweigh the potential health risks for the patient.”
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Jun 14 2024

US House Committee Votes to Continue Blocking D.C. Marijuana Sales and Nationwide Marijuana Banking

The House Appropriations Committee has voted to remove provisions from a massive spending bill that would have allowed Washington, D.C. to open recreational marijuana stores and permitted banks to work with state-legal marijuana businesses.

Earlier this month, the House Appropriations Financial Services and General Government (FSGG) Subcommittee released its Fiscal Year 2025 Financial Services and General Government Bill. Included in the measure was a provision to remove a long-standing federal restriction preventing Washington, D.C. from allowing legal recreational marijuana sales, despite the district legalizing them in 2014. The bill also included a provision to allow nationwide marijuana banking.

Today, the House Appropriations Committee voted to remove both provisions from the FSGG Bill.
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Jun 14 2024

Maryland: Record-Breaking $96.8 Million in Legal Marijuana Sales in May

There was more legal marijuana sold in May in Maryland than in any previous month.

According to data released by the Maryland Cannabis Administration, $96,861,897 worth of legal marijuana and marijuana products were sold in May. This is $4.5 million more than the total sales for April.

Approximately $67 million of these sales came from recreational marijuana consumers, with the remaining $30 million purchased by medical marijuana patients. Year to date, Maryland’s legal marijuana market has generated $462.2 million in sales.
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