Latest Cannabis News: February 9, 2021

Stay up to date with the latest legalization and cannabis news with the CB Advisors. Every week, we will release a snippet of what’s happening with each state in the cannabis industry. Did you miss last week? No worries – click here for last week’s cannabis news.

Dry:

Idaho: The House Health & Welfare Committee Monday voted to introduce a new, restrictive bill to legalize medical marijuana in Idaho. Committee members heard riveting testimony from Dr. Dan Zuckerman, director of St. Luke’s Cancer Institute, and Sgt. Jeremy Kitzhaber, an Air Force veteran from Boise — and terminal cancer patient. The bill is sponsored by Reps. Mike Kingsley, (R-Lewiston) and Rep. llana Rubel, (D-Boise).
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Kansas: The governor of Kansas wants voters to put pressure on their representatives to get medical marijuana legalization passed this year. The comments come one day after Gov. Laura Kelly (D) announced a plan last week to enact the reform and use cannabis tax revenue to fund Medicaid expansion in the state.
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CBD:

Alabama: A proposal to allow medical marijuana in Alabama was approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday morning. Senate Bill 46, called the Compassion Act, was proposed by Republican State Sen. Tim Melson of Florence. It passed by a vote of 8-3. The bill will now go to the senate floor.
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South Dakota: On Monday, a South Dakota circuit judge appointed by Gov. Kristi L. Noem (R) rejected the constitutional amendment to legalize the recreational use of marijuana, arguing that it would have “far-reaching effects on the basic nature” of the state’s government to the point of being unconstitutional. Judge Christina Klinger’s ruling sets up what is likely to be an increasingly contentious legal battle over the state’s Amendment A, which allows residents to grow, license and sell cannabis. If a higher court overturns Klinger’s ruling, July 1 will mark the first day it will be legal to possess small amounts of marijuana in South Dakota.
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Wisconsin: Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers (D) on Sunday unveiled a plan to legalize marijuana as part of his forthcoming budget proposal, a policy change he said reflects the will of voters and would bring the state hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue that could be used to fund schools and equity initiatives. “Legalizing and taxing marijuana in Wisconsin—just like we do already with alcohol—ensures a controlled market and safe product are available for both recreational and medicinal users,” the governor said in a statement, “and can open the door for countless opportunities for us to reinvest in our communities and create a more equitable state.”
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Medical:

Connecticut: An informal task force formed by Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont (D) has issued a series of recommendations on how to legalize marijuana with an eye toward social justice for communities most harmed by prohibition. The group—which was comprised of about 20 lawmakers, advocates and community leaders—tackled two main sets of issues: those related to licensing and regulations, as well as community reinvestment. It was formed by the administration on a largely ad hoc basis in December and has stayed relatively under-the-radar in the weeks since.
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Florida: Rep. Carlos Guillermo Smith (D-Orlando) filed related bills HB 343 and SB 710 along with Sen. Jeff Brandes (R-St. Petersburg) to allow for the legal adult recreational use of marijuana in the state. Guillermo Smith during prior sessions has filed versions of the bill in Florida — which already allows the medical use of the drug — that were unable to advance for further consideration.
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Hawaii: Outside medical cannabis use, more than a half dozen marijuana-related bills, including a measure to legalize its recreational use, have been introduced this legislative session. Not one had secured a hearing before an assigned committee as of press-time Thursday. Feb. 19 is the deadline for all bills referred to more than one committee to move to their final committee. Bills referred to three committees must reach their second committee by Feb. 11.
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Iowa: There is a renewed push by elected officials in Iowa to legalize marijuana. State Sen. Joe Bolkcom, a Democrat from Iowa City, is leading the charge. Bolkcom plans to introduce two bills in the coming weeks. The first would regulate marijuana like alcohol modeled after Illinois’ bill. He also wants to decriminalize a small amount of marijuana for personal use by adults and allow local governments to decriminalize small amounts of marijuana within city limits.
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Mississippi: The blueprint for Mississippi’s medical marijuana program is Initiative 65 that voters approved in November. That contains detailed requirements and the clock is ticking to get it started. The State Board of Health met virtually Wednesday to discuss the groundwork of the medical marijuana program. Dr. Thomas Dobbs presented a timeline, noting they have to get regulations approved by July 1 and start getting cards and licenses out by August 15. Board member Jim Perry noted that the public shouldn’t be surprised if that doesn’t mean product in hand by that date.
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New Mexico: The New Mexico Department of Health is considering revoking the license of a medical marijuana producer over an October fire that seriously injured two employees at one of its Santa Fe locations, according to a notice. The department suspended New Mexicann Natural Medicine’s ability to manufacture cannabis-derived products after the fire, which the notice says occurred when the two employees were engaged in a cannabis extraction process.
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New York: Gov. Andrew Cuomo seems serious this year about legalizing adult-use recreational cannabis after failing to do so for two consecutive years. What is different this time is the governor has a $15 billion budget deficit created in large part, he said, by the Covid-19 health pandemic. And neighboring state New Jersey legalized cannabis last year, which some say could force the governor’s hand. The governor’s proposal includes two taxes. One tax is based on the potency of the product that is imposed on the sale of cannabis from the wholesaler to the retail store. The second tax is 10.25% at the register when consumers purchase products at cannabis retail stores.
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Pennsylvania: The governor of Pennsylvania says marijuana legalization is a priority as he begins annual budget negotiations with lawmakers—even though his formal spending request doesn’t seem to contain any legislative language to actually accomplish the cannabis policy change. Gov. Tom Wolf (D) continued that advocacy on Wednesday, saying in his budget speech that there’s “a lot more in the budget, including a number of things that I know have bipartisan support.” He listed cannabis legalization as one of those items.
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Virginia: Virginia lawmakers voted Friday to legalize marijuana, agreeing in principle to legislation that would allow retail sales to begin in 2024 and expunge many past convictions. “Our commonwealth’s prohibition on cannabis has clearly failed,” said Sen. Adam Ebbin, D-Alexandria, who sponsored the bill in the Senate with Sen. Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth. “We’ve had hundreds of thousands of Virginians branded as criminals and disadvantaged in various ways, and the war on marijuana has disproportionately targeted and impacted Virginia’s communities of color.”
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West Virginia: West Virginia residents are now able to register for access to medical marijuana, but the state still needs to partner with a testing lab before the product can be put on the market. Beginning Wednesday, patients can register with the Office of Medical Cannabis to be approved for medical marijuana. The application process requires them to provide patient information, photo identification and approval from a physician. To date, only 30 physicians in the state are eligible to approve a person for access to medical marijuana.
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Recreational:

California: California has finally clarified that cannabis industry workers are generally eligible for the first round of coronavirus vaccines—a development that comes weeks after state officials deflected questions from Marijuana Moment about the policy. California Department of Public Health (CDPH) said in updated guidance on Thursday that retail marijuana workers are included in Phase 1A of the COVID-19 vaccine rollout, meaning they can qualify as essential health care employees. While the state said this applies to “medicinal cannabis” workers, many dispensaries in California serve both patients and adult-use consumers.
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Colorado: The lone medical doctor in the Colorado legislature is looking to cut back the THC content on the most potent cannabis products, among other changes that would have major impacts on the state’s cannabis industry. State Rep. Yadira Caraveo, a pediatrician and Thornton Democrat, said she is still revising the bill she plans to introduce this month, but one of the main provisions would ban legal marijuana products above 15% THC — the psychoactive compound responsible for the marijuana high. The ban would apply to flower and edibles. THC in flower products can top off close to 30%, while concentrates generally run at 70-80%.
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Illinois: Cannabis sales for January neared $90 million. Since adult-use sales began in January 2020, nearly $757.9 million in cannabis has been sold. The taxes on that can be more than 40 percent, depending on the potency and whether a local sales tax is added on to the state taxes. For the state’s taxes, the total collected from January 2020 through last month totaled more than $205.4 million.
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Maine: Rep. Colleen Madigan, D-Waterville, has proposed “An Act To Amend the Law Regarding the Advertising and Marketing of Adult Use Marijuana.” This act would allow businesses to appeal to use their logos and branding on a case-by-case basis, to try and get around some of the stricter language of the current laws. As of now, no branding with humans, animals, or fruit can be depicted, by virtue of the fact that those things could appeal to children.
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Nevada: Nevada’s first official demographic survey of cannabis businesses shows that women and minorities account for a smaller percentage of the local marijuana industry versus their overall representation in the state – especially when it comes to ownership and management. The compliance board said it will refine the survey process but hopes the initial data will provide a baseline moving forward. The agency also is establishing a pilot program for identifying opportunities for emerging small cannabis businesses to participate in the marijuana industry.
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Washington: Washington’s status as a legalization pioneer has lagged in one respect: It remains a felony to grow marijuana for recreational use at home. A proposal advancing in the state Legislature would change that, allowing adults 21 years and older to grow up to six marijuana plants, with no more than 15 plants allowed in any household. House Bill 1019 passed out of a legislative committee last month with bipartisan support and is scheduled for a hearing Tuesday in the House Appropriations Committee.
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