Latest Cannabis News: January 19, 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: Idaho Republican state Sen. Scott Grow on Monday introduced a constitutional amendment to prohibit psychoactive drugs – including cannabis – which would make it harder to legalize them in the future, the Idaho Statesman reports.
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Kansas: On Wednesday, a medical marijuana bill was introduced with the support of the Kansas Cannabis Industry Association. Kansas is one of 14 states without legal access to medical marijuana. Supporters said they are confident enough lawmakers would support the bill if it was voted on. They said the bill would implement a regulated system, making sure the product is safe and tax is collected.
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Nebraska: State Senator Anna Wishart introduced a new bill (LB474) that would legalize medical marijuana in Nebraska. There’s already a new ballot initiative to put medical marijuana on the November 2022 ballot. Senator Justin Wayne also introduced a new bill to legalize the recreational use of cannabis for Nebraskans 21 and older.
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CBD:

Indiana: Indiana State Sen. Karen Tallian introduced S.B. 87 and 223 which would allow for the regulation and legalization of marijuana in the state. “Arrests for marijuana possession made up 45% of all drug arrests from 2010-2018 in Indiana. Contextually, Black Hoosiers are 3.5x more likely to be arrested for the possession of marijuana. Our neighboring states have made efforts to address unjust marijuana laws, and it’s time for us to do the same,” Tallian said in a Facebook post.
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Kentucky: Kentucky Cannabis Company, the original CBD company of Kentucky and the parent company of Bluegrass Hemp Oil, has been working closely with Kentucky Senator Adrienne Southworth to propose a bill that will increase the amount of THC in Hemp.  Because of that, Senator Southworth filed Senate Bill 113. This bill proposes an increase in the allowable amount of THC in hemp – a move from .3% to 1%.
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South Dakota: South Dakota legislative session started on Jan. 12 and only one bill regarding marijuana had been filed. Leaders in both the Republican and Democratic parties say discussions on preparing for legalization and regulation of the business of marijuana have barely begun. As of Jan. 11, a search of public business filings on the Secretary of State’s website found more than 40 businesses with the words “cannabis,” “marijuana,” “pot” or “dispensary” in their names.
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Wisconsin: Governor Evers revealed that he is considering including the legalization of recreational marijuana in his upcoming budget, which will run from July 2021 through June 2023. He cites the desire to boost state revenue, and it is part of a larger effort from the governor’s office to reform criminal justice, especially as it relates to (the lack of) racial justice in Wisconsin.
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Medical:

Arkansas: Medical marijuana sales in Arkansas reached $175 million in 2020, ending the year with a record $1.22 million day. The Marijuana Business Factbook projects that Arkansas MMJ sales will nearly double this year to $300 million-$365 million, boosted by new items such as edibles and vape products. The state recently opened up licensing for processors.
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Connecticut: Senate Bill 129 to expand Veteran access to Medical Marijuana is pending. The measure exempts veterans from the fees for registration and written certification for medical marijuana and establishes a process to identify veterans who qualify as patients for medical marijuana.
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Louisiana: Louisiana State University in Shreveport will offer a “Careers in Cannabis” course beginning in the Spring of 2021. LSUS says the legal cannabis industry is predicted to outpace all other industries in terms of job growth by 2030, and they want to be at the forefront regionally for education surrounding this new emerging market.
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Maryland: Cannabis employees in Maryland will be placed at the top of the list, alongside health-care providers, for receiving the state’s first wave of COVID-19 vaccinations. That status further confirms the “essential” designation that cannabis businesses and their workers received when the coronavirus pandemic began.
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Missouri: Missouri lawmakers may resurrect their probe of the state’s beleaguered medical marijuana program. Rep. Jered Taylor, R-Nixa, the new head of the House Special Committee on Government Oversight, said Thursday he is open to continuing the panel’s investigation, which stalled in March. The program has drawn criticism and lawsuits from companies whose bids for medical marijuana business licenses were denied. Complaints have targeted the scoring process and potential conflicts of interest.
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Mississippi: Two medical associations are throwing their support behind a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the medical marijuana ballot initiative that Mississippi voters overwhelmingly approved in November, arguing that it creates “risks to public health” and places a “burden” on physicians. The American Medical Association (AMA) and its state affiliate, the Mississippi State Medical Association (MSMA), recently filed an amicus brief backing the legal challenge being considered by the state Supreme Court, which was brought by the city of Madison just days before the election.
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New Mexico: Governor, Michelle Grisham, of New Mexico announced that marijuana legalization is one of her administration’s 2021 legislative priorities. She released her agenda for this year’s legislative session, and part of her plan to bolster the economy is to legalize recreational marijuana.
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New York: Governor Cuomo’s State of the State address last week he released more details of his marijuana legalization proposal, including plans to reinvest in communities most impacted by the war on drugs. Cuomo believes that legalizing cannabis will help boost the economy during this pandemic and will bring tax revenue and jobs. New Jersey’s decisions to legalize recreational marijuana has put pressure for neighboring states, including New York and Pennsylvania.
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North Dakota: North Dakota activists submitted a measure to allow adults 21 and older to possess and cultivate cannabis for personal use to Secretary of State Al Jaeger, to push getting marijuana legalization on the state’s 2022 ballot. The proposal would make it so adults would be allowed to possess cannabis and grow up to 12 plants (up to six of which could be mature). It also contains a provision stating that the legislature could later enact regulations to allow for a commercial market. To succeed, they will need to collect 26,904 valid signatures from registered voters.

In other news, lawmakers have introduced a bill to significantly expand marijuana decriminalization in the state, building on an initial cannabis decriminalization law that was enacted in 2019. The new proposal would make legal offenses of possessing marijuana less strict.
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Virginia: A Virginia Senate committee held an initial hearing on a bill to legalize marijuana that was introduced with support from the governor. The legislation’s quick consideration by the Senate is an early sign that lawmakers intend to advance it expeditiously. Two additional hearings are scheduled in a newly formed subcommittee of the panel that is specifically focused on cannabis policy. The bill would regulate and tax marijuana sales and production and allow adults 21 and older to purchase and possess up to one ounce of cannabis and cultivate up to four plants for personal use, two of which could be mature.
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Recreational:

Arizona: Marijuana sales to anyone 21 or older in Arizona could start within a day or two, with state health officials telling dispensaries they are poised to issue licenses for adult sales. The first stores able to sell marijuana and marijuana products, such as vape pens and gummy edibles, are medical-marijuana dispensaries. Some of those businesses said Tuesday they are awaiting approval from state regulators to show up online so they may open their doors to anyone with a state-issued ID.
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California: A California judge ruled this week that state marijuana regulators have 30 days to inform businesses of a new ban on billboard advertising. San Luis Obispo County Superior Court Judge Ginger Garrett ruled in November that billboards advertising cannabis sales or products were illegal under Proposition 64, the 2016 ballot measure that legalized recreational marijuana in the state.
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Illinois: Illinois has collected $62 million from legalized marijuana sales that’s earmarked for helping minority businesses and neighborhood development, but the money hasn’t been spent yet, according to a published report. The reasons include problems with the state’s system to hand out new cannabis business licenses and numerous requests for help, according to The Chicago Tribune.
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Maine: A South Portland, Maine, recreational cannabis retailer has run afoul of the state’s marijuana regulator over its logo, which depicts a mermaid holding a shell. SeaWeed Co. owner Scott Howard faces a $10,000 fine over the “willful use of a prohibited image,” the Portland Press Herald reported.
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Massachusetts: For the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission, there’s a fresh start with both the new year and new regulators. The regulatory board is starting 2021 with three new commissioners, Ava Callender Concepcion, Nurys Z. Camargo and Bruce Stebbins, as well as newly promulgated regulations.

In other news, marijuana retailers in Massachusetts filed a lawsuit against the state’s Cannabis Control Commission’s rules that allow only social equity applicants to deliver cannabis for the program’s first three years. The Commonwealth Dispensary Association contends that preventing marijuana retailers from delivering cannabis under their existing retail licenses violates a statute allowing them to do so, the Boston Business Journal reported.
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Michigan: Michigan regulators are proposing new taxes on marijuana, including a 3% excise tax on medical marijuana sales and a 1.5% tax on all business-to-business transactions. Proceeds from the medical sales tax could generate nearly $12 million per year, based on the pace of medical sales in December alone, with a primary goal of promoting and funding new minority-run marijuana businesses.
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Oregon: House Bill 2519 allowing licensed dispensaries to home deliver adult use cannabis to consumers 21 and older is currently pending approval. Delivery will be allowed within a city or county in which marijuana retailer is located and to consumers in cities or counties that have adopted ordinances allowing for delivery of marijuana items.
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Washington: A renewed effort under HB 1019 in Washington State to allow adults to grow marijuana at home had its first hearing in Olympia, with a House committee considering a bill that would permit individuals to cultivate up to six cannabis plants for personal use. A committee vote on the proposal could come as soon as this Friday. Under the new legislation, home growers could be charged with a civil infraction if odors from their plants cause a public nuisance or if plants can be seen from public property.
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