President Joe Biden is taking his first major steps toward decriminalizing marijuana, fulfilling a campaign pledge to erase prior federal possession convictions and beginning the process of loosening federal classification of the drug. He will pardon all prior federal offenses of simple marijuana possession, a move that senior administration officials said would affect thousands of …
Category Archives: Legalization
Five States to Vote on Legal Cannabis: Ballots & Boundaries
Voters in 5 states, Arkansas, Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota and Maryland will consider recreational marijuana initiatives this fall. Nineteen states and the District of Columbia have passed laws by ballot measure or legislation. http://about.bgov.com/news/five-states-to-vote-on-legal-cannabis-ballots-boundaries/
California enacts cannabis users’ right to work law
Thousands and thousands of California workers unjustly denied jobs or fired for unscientific marijuana tests received new protections recently. A new bill signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom has made it illegal for employers to discriminate against workers solely for off-duty weed use. The bill effectively ends pre-employment urine testing, except for federal jobs and for …
Continue reading “California enacts cannabis users’ right to work law”
California Bill Would Allow Cannabis Sales at Farmers Markets
Once again California leads the way! A bill proposed in the California legislature would allow cannabis to be sold at farmers markets and establish permits for offering cannabis at temporary state-licensed events, The measure passed the Assembly Business and Professions Committee on Tuesday. http://www.ganjapreneur.com/california-bill-would-allow-cannabis-sales-at-farmers-markets/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=california_bill_would_allow_cannabis_sales_at_farmers_markets_canopy_growth_lays_off_another_245_workers_and_more&utm_term=2022-04-29
South Carolina Lawmaker Files ‘420 Day’ Bill To Require Annual Marijuana Pardons On Cannabis Holiday
South Carolina lawmaker JA Moore has proposed legislation to create “420 Day”. The measure would direct the state Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services to provide relief to at least 20 percent of those who’ve completed their sentence for simple marijuana possession every year on April 20.
Malta Set To Become First Country In Europe To Legalize Marijuana This Week
Malta is set to become the first country in Europe to legalize marijuana. This very small country in the Mediterranean between Sicily and the North African coast with its history, culture and beaches is a great tourist destination. The legislation would allow adults 18 and older to possess up to seven grams of cannabis and …
Continue reading “Malta Set To Become First Country In Europe To Legalize Marijuana This Week”
Luxembourg to become first country in Europe to legalize cannabis
Luxembourg is set to become the first European nation to legalize the growing and use of cannabis. Under the new legislation, adults over 18 will be allowed to use cannabis, and to grow up to four plants per household, which would make it the first country in Europe to fully legalize the production and consumption of …
Continue reading “Luxembourg to become first country in Europe to legalize cannabis”
I Wanted to Join the Legal Cannabis Industry. Now I’m Sitting in Prison.
Jonathan Wall has been incarcerated for the last 12 months at the Chesapeake Detention Facility, a supermax security lock up in Baltimore, Maryland for selling weed. If convicted, he could be sentenced to anywhere from 10 years to life in prison without any possibility of parole. http://truthout.org/articles/i-wanted-to-join-the-legal-cannabis-industry-now-im-sitting-in-prison/
CANNABIS DECRIMINALIZED IN NEW ORLEANS, PARDONS 10,000 CANNABIS CONVICTIONS
The New Orleans City Council has passed a series of articles to pardon cannabis-related charges and effectively decriminalize cannabis. By unanimous vote the city council also pardoned an estimated 10,000 people. The city is also making an effort to work with the NOPD to end the war on weed – freeing the department to focus more …
Continue reading “CANNABIS DECRIMINALIZED IN NEW ORLEANS, PARDONS 10,000 CANNABIS CONVICTIONS”
Billionaire Charles Koch On Why Cannabis Should Be Legal
The legalization of marijuana at the federal in the US has acquired an unexpected and powerful ally in the person of billionaire Charles Koch – the devout libertarian known for spending a fortune on political causes. And it’s not because he’s a pothead http://www.forbes.com/sites/willyakowicz/2021/07/27/billionaire-charles-koch-on-why-cannabis-should-be-legal/?sh=52562e894a73
Amazon Is Officially a Registered Cannabis Lobbyist
It’s official! Amazon is now a registered cannabis lobbyist. And, there’s no arguing that Amazon’s mega bucks could make a difference in the lobbying effort to pass federal cannabis legislation in the United States. But who knows what kind of legislation it is going to advocate for? http://merryjane.com/news/amazon-is-officially-a-registered-cannabis-lobbyist
Sen. Schumer’s Bill Would End Cannabis Prohibition And Regulate Pot Like Tobacco
Cannabis will not achieve its full flowering in America until the end of federal regulation and Senator Chuck Schumer’s draft bill is a very important first step towards this end. But don’t start counting your chickens yet folks. Who knows if there is a majority of votes in Congress to pass it. It’s not just …
Continue reading “Sen. Schumer’s Bill Would End Cannabis Prohibition And Regulate Pot Like Tobacco”
Mexico’s Catholic Church Warns Legalization Will Turn People Into Weed Addicts and “Slaves”
In the wake of Mexico’s historic Supreme Court decision on July 28th that proclaimed cannabis prohibition unconstitutional, the country’s Catholic church warns that legalization will turn people into weed addicts and slaves. In a country where 81% of people identify as catholic, how much influence is the church’s warning likely to have? http://merryjane.com/news/mexicos-catholic-church-warns-legalization-will-turn-people-into-weed-addicts-and-slaves
Republicans are watching their states back weed — and they’re not sold
The popularity of marijuana is booming in red states but not with the conservatives that represent them on Capitol Hill, perhaps, suggesting that it is going to be very difficult to muster up the 60 votes needed to get federal legislation passed – especially since there are going to be some democratic defectors. http://www.politico.com/news/2021/06/27/republicans-weed-496390
Start Spreading The News: New York Could Displace California As Cannabis Capital Of The World
California passed its adult use legislation way back in 2016 but much of the state is still without cannabis dispensaries, manufacturing, or cultivation – because of a law that did not do much of it was supposed to do. New York cannabis activists, on the hand, seems to have gotten just about everything they wanted …
Federal Report Finds No Increase In Teen Cannabis Use After Legalization
A recent federal report showed zero signs of increased teenage cannabis use due to cannabis legalization policies. This finding directly contradicts one of the most enduring arguments for cannabis prohibition: that legalization will lead to increased cannabis use among young people. http://www.ganjapreneur.com/federal-report-finds-no-increase-in-teen-cannabis-use-after-legalization/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=feds_admit_legalization_doesnt_increase_teen_use_social_equity_applicant_sues_los_angeles_and_more&utm_term=2021-06-03
Survey: Most Christian Religious Groups Support Cannabis Legalization
Say your prayers and pass the joint. The majority of individuals who identify as religious support broad cannabis legalization, according to a Pew Research Center survey. The poll found support for both medical and adult use by 60% of all adults, with 31% only supporting medical use, and 8% preferring cannabis to remain outlawed. http://www.ganjapreneur.com/survey-most-christian-religious-groups-support-cannabis-legalization/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=federal_cannabis_bill_reintroduced_in_us_house_survey_reveals_christian_groups_support_legalization_and_more&utm_term=2021-05-31
What Is Biden’s Beef With Cannabis?
The cannabis industry had great hopes for the Biden/Harris administration. Were those hopes misplaced? Several members of the administration have been terminated, in part, for admitting to past marijuana use. That was, of course, disappointing to many but the much bigger issue seems to be the struggle to figure out the administration’s philosophical approach to …
D.C. ‘Shocked’ and ‘Disappointed’ By Biden Move to Uphold Ban On Recreational Cannabis Sales
D.C. elected officials and business owners are voicing their frustration following news that President Joe Biden’s proposed budget would continue to prevent the District from legalizing recreational cannabis sales. The White House released its $6 trillion spending plan for the upcoming fiscal year that includes language blocking D.C. from using local tax revenue to launch a regulated …
Amazon Now Supports Federal Cannabis Legalization
Amazon has joined the fight to legalize cannabis at the federal level. The company announced this past Monday that its public policy arm now supports a cannabis legalization bill that was reintroduced in the House late last month. Amazon also changed its drug testing policy and will no longer disqualify employees for marijuana use. http://www.forbes.com/sites/willyakowicz/2021/06/01/amazon-now-supports-federal-cannabis-legalization/?sh=391edfd334a5
These states could still legalize recreational or medical cannabis in 2021
The legalization of marijuana has been gaining steam in recent years as state after state approved adult use in some form. And although the year is already 5 months old, pundits believe that as many as 10 additional states could legislate recreational or medical marijuana before year’s end – with the prospect of generating hundreds …
Continue reading “These states could still legalize recreational or medical cannabis in 2021”
What to expect in NYC now that weed is legal
Weed is now legal in New York. There will, of course, be smoking lounges and tons of new dispensaries now that people can have up to three ounces on their person. But what other changes and new developments can a weed lover expect? How will legalization change the culture? Here are some ideas from TimeOut. …
Continue reading “What to expect in NYC now that weed is legal”
Weed is still illegal in states where sex with farm animals isn’t
A new ad campaign from Monogram, Jay-Z’s weed brand, is highlighting the absurdity and hypocrisy of cannabis laws in the U.S. Consider the fact that weed is illegal in states where sex with a farm animal is not! http://www.fastcompany.com/90610156/weed-is-still-illegal-in-states-where-sex-with-farm-animals-isnt
How New York Just Became The Newest Global Destination For Cannabis Tourism
Heard of the MRTA? No, it’s not a regional transportation authority. It’s New York’s Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act. Amon other things, this new law makes it legal for adults to smoke cannabis anywhere that tobacco can be legally smoked and creates a framework for public use and consumption sites. Has New York just blown …
Continue reading “How New York Just Became The Newest Global Destination For Cannabis Tourism”
Yes, Pot Is Legal. But It’s Also in Short Supply.
Recreational weed is now legal in New York and New Jersey. And experts predict that the market for marijuana in the this densely populated region will exceed $6 billion in 5 years. That is huge! But guess what folks? There is a problem with the supply. There ain’t enough of it around for the increasingly …
Continue reading “Yes, Pot Is Legal. But It’s Also in Short Supply.”
Cresco Says 1 In 4 Americans Consume Cannabis
More and more Americans are smoking weed. In fact, 25% say they have consumed cannabis in some form in the past twelve months – a whopping increase since 2018 when just 16% of U.S. adults said they did. What’s more, 23% of users say they tried cannabis for the first time over the past year. …
Continue reading “Cresco Says 1 In 4 Americans Consume Cannabis”
The cannabis tourist’s guide to legal US states
Cannabis tourism is now a thing in several states and will become increasingly so as more states allow recreational use. But because weed remains illegal at the Federal level, the legal states have all devised different rules about what users can or cannot do. How’s a visitor to know what she can or cannot do …
Continue reading “The cannabis tourist’s guide to legal US states”
South Dakota State Bar Says Lawyers Cannot Serve Cannabis Industry
The State Bar of South Dakota ethics committee says that attorneys in the state may not provide legal services to cannabis industry clients. This guidance comes after voters approved both medical and adult-use cannabis legalization in the state in November. The opinion cites the South Dakota Bar Rules of Professional Conduct which directs lawyers not to “counsel …
Continue reading “South Dakota State Bar Says Lawyers Cannot Serve Cannabis Industry”
Illinois Expunges Nearly Half a Million Cannabis Arrest Records 4 Years Ahead of Schedule
It is already a very happy new year for thousands of people in Illinois with cannabis related criminal records. Governor, J.B. Pritzker has issued close to 10,000 pardons for low-level cannabis convictions and the Illinois State Police has expunged nearly half a million non-felony cannabis-related arrest records. Way to go guv! http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/illinois-expunges-nearly-half-a-million-cannabis-arrest-records-4-years-ahead-of-schedule/2405818/
1 in 3 Americans now lives in a state where recreational marijuana is legal
Election day added about 16 million people to the list of places that permit adults to use marijuana. These new people join about 93 million others who live in states that already have legalized weed – meaning that about 1 in 3 Americans now live in states where marijuana is legal for anyone 21 and …
Continue reading “1 in 3 Americans now lives in a state where recreational marijuana is legal”
