Latest Cannabis News: July 20, 2021
Latest Cannabis News: July 20, 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.
CBD
Georgia: After years of waiting, advocates say Georgia is closer than ever to beginning to allow the sale of medical marijuana. The state’s Access to Medical Cannabis Commission has announced that it plans to vote on which growers it will award licenses to on Saturday. It has been years since Republican former Gov. Nathan Deal signed a bill into law legalizing low-potency marijuana oil for people with severe chronic illnesses.
“The next step is to issue what is known as a ‘Notice Of Intent to Award’ the license contracts,” said Andrew Turnage, executive director of the state-run Georgia Access to Medical Cannabis Commission. “The Commission anticipates the announcement, which will name the companies the Commission intends to award low-THC oil production licenses to, will be voted upon at the next public meeting.” The meeting is scheduled for Saturday, July 24 at 11 a.m. in Rock Spring.
Kentucky: The Kentucky Hemp Association is asking a state judge to stop police from conducting what it says are illegal and improper raids on hemp businesses selling products containing Delta-8 THC. It is a substance touted as “marijuana lite.”
The group claims state police illegally raided two lawful hemp retail stores June 15 in Morehead, Since then, said Dee Dee Taylor, an association member and chief executive officer of the Hemp Wellness Center in Louisville, the Casey County sheriff’s office illegally raided five stores in that county, state police raided a Hardinsburg store and a police task force raided a store in Hardin County.
Source: https://www.kentucky.com/news/politics-government/article252807058.html
North Carolina: Lawmakers may take another step this week on a Senate bill that would permit the use of medical marijuana for the first time in North Carolina. The bipartisan Senate Bill 711, titled “NC Compassionate Care Act,” is the latest in a 12-year attempt. The Senate Finance committee will address the bill at 1 p.m. Wednesday. The committee has canceled the meeting that was set for Tuesday in which SB711 was the only bill on the agenda. SB711 cleared the Senate Judiciary committee on June 30 after a 65-minute hearing. It still must clear — in this order — the Finance, Health Care, and Rules and Operations committees before a potential Senate floor vote. The pathway through the state House could be equally daunting, if not more so, according to political analysts.
Medical
Alabama: The board that will oversee Alabama’s new medical marijuana program is in place. State Health Officer Dr. Scott Harris has appointed Dr. Jerzy P. Szaflarski, to the 14-member Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission. Szaflarski has been a key figure on Alabama’s path to the medical marijuana program over about the last seven years.
The bill created the 14-member commission to run the program and to license the cultivators, processors, transporters, testing labs, and dispensaries for the medical cannabis products, which doctors will be able to recommend to patients with chronic pain and other symptoms and conditions.
Source: https://www.al.com/news/2021/07/panel-now-set-to-oversee-alabamas-new-medical-marijuana-program.html
Ohio: Ohio lawmakers are preparing to file a bill to legalize and regulate marijuana in the state. This would mark the first time such a proposal to allow recreational cannabis commerce has been introduced in the legislature.
Rep. Casey Weinstein (D) is sponsoring the legislation alongside Rep. Terrence Upchurch (D). While the text of the measure has not yet been released, the lawmakers circulated a co-sponsorship memo to colleagues on Thursday to shore up support for the effort in advance of its formal introduction. The bill would enable the Department of Commerce to oversee commercial marijuana distribution and sales, including licensure of marijuana retailers, marijuana processors, marijuana secure transporters, marijuana safety compliance facilities, and marijuana microbusinesses. The bill would further specify that the bill is not to be construed as authorizing the unsafe or hazardous consumption of marijuana. The bill enables municipalities to restrict the type and number of marijuana establishments operating within the municipality and requires the Department of Commerce to adopt rules related to the licensure of marijuana businesses, as well as the safe cultivation, processing, and distribution of marijuana. The bill imposes restrictions on the cultivation, processing, transportation, and sale of marijuana.
Recreational
California: The Department of Cannabis Control (DCC) was established last week, following the signing of Assembly Bill 141. This action consolidates the three state cannabis programs into a single department. The creation of a standalone cannabis department, proposed by Governor Gavin Newsom, is part of a larger effort to improve access to licensure, simplify regulatory oversight and support California businesses. The Governor appointed Nicole Elliott to lead DCC as its Director. This action represents the most significant consolidation and reorganization of state agencies since the Business, Consumer Services and Housing (BCSH) Agency was created in 2013. It is the culmination of 18 months of sustained effort by officials from more than 10 state agencies and reflects input from stakeholders and the legislature.
DCC will regulate all commercial cannabis license holders in California, including cultivators, retailers, manufacturers, distributors, testing laboratories, microbusinesses, and industry event organizers. DCC will also manage the state’s track-and-trace system, which is used to track cannabis and cannabis products, from seed to sale, within the legal supply chain.
Illinois: Illinois Governor JB Pritzker (D) signed legislation into law aimed at increasing diversity in the state’s marijuana industry. House Bill 1443 provides for an additional 110 marijuana dispensary licenses, which will be awarded to qualified applicants via two separate lotteries comprised of 55 licenses in each. The second lottery is reserved for equity applicants who have or whose family members have, a past marijuana conviction, or who have lived in a “disproportionately impacted area” for at least 10 years.
A third lottery will occur in August to award an additional 75 licenses to “tied applicants,” or those who may have been awarded a license, but did not secure one due to two or more applicants receiving the same score on their license application. HB 1443 takes effect immediately.
Massachusetts: Home-delivered marijuana has arrived in Massachusetts. At least two companies announced this week they have launched operations. Lantern, a sister company of the popular alcohol delivery service Drizly, says it’s now serving the Boston area. Your Green Package, meanwhile, says its driver teams have hit the road in the greater Northampton area in the western end of the state. The companies are among the first to benefit from the creation of new state licenses for recreational marijuana delivery companies. The Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission said Friday that 11 companies have so far been licensed for deliveries, and three of them are now operating.
Source: https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2021/07/16/marijuana-delivery-launches-in-massachusetts/
Nevada: Carson City’s Board of Supervisors voted on Thursday to ban granting business licenses for marijuana lounges, becoming the first local government to try to enact such a ban after state lawmakers passed a bill legalizing lounges earlier this year. The legislation, which passed with bipartisan support and was signed into law by Gov. Steve Sisolak, allows standalone marijuana lounges and lounges connected to existing dispensaries.
But a late amendment to Assemblyman Steve Yeager’s bill gave local governments the power to ban such lounges. Thursday morning, Carson City supervisors voted 4-1 to approve an ordinance banning the bar-like lounges.
Virginia: Virginia Governor Ralph Northam announced Monday the appointments to three newly-created boards responsible for overseeing the legalization of recreational marijuana in the Commonwealth: the Cannabis Control Authority (CCA), the Cannabis Equity Reinvestment Board and the Cannabis Public Health Advisory Board. In April, Virginia became the first Southern state to pass adult-use cannabis legislation. On July 1, 2021, the new law took effect, legalizing simple possession and home cultivation for adults age 21 and older and sealing some marijuana-related records. The measure also created a new independent state entity, the Cannabis Control Authority, to regulate the cannabis market.
According to a release, the CCA will be led by a five-member Board of Directors, responsible for the creation of the adult-use marketplace for cannabis. The authority will have control of the regulated sale, transportation and distribution of marijuana and marijuana products in Virginia.
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