Latest Cannabis News: October 13, 2020

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:

Mississippi: With just weeks left before Mississippi voters decide on a pair of dueling medical marijuana initiatives, Gov. Tate Reeves (R) is adding a new wrinkle into the mix. The governor signed legislation on Thursday that amends state law to allow people to obtain marijuana-derived medications that are approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In announcing the action, Reeves reiterated his opposition to broader medical cannabis reform, stating that he’s “against efforts to make marijuana mainstream.”
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Wisconsin: Local lawmakers in Madison, Wisconsin are proposing an expanded marijuana decriminalization ordinance that would allow adults to possess and consume cannabis in private and public settings, with certain restrictions. The municipal measure would not change overarching state prohibition laws but would make it so that the police department wouldn’t refer certain cases for prosecution.
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Medical:

Arizona: New rules have been proposed by the Arizona Peace Officer Standards and Training Board (AZPOST) to relax limits on past cannabis use for those who want to become police officers. The new rules proposed in June and finally approve this week by Gov. Doug Ducey administration, state that applicants will only be disqualified if they’ve consumed marijuana during the past two years; how many times an applicant used the drug and in what form will no longer matter under the new plan. This is expected to increase the number of eligible applicants, allowing law enforcement agencies to select those best qualifies for the job.
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Florida: The fate of the state’s medical marijuana regulatory structure lies in the hands of the Florida Supreme Court, which on Wednesday heard a legal challenge brought by Florigrown for a second time. The company alleges the state’s law favored some businesses getting licenses over others. The court must now decide whether that’s true. Whether 11 new companies enter the marketplace or many more, rests in the hands of the justices.
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Missouri: Missouri is getting closer to selling medical marijuana, as the state’s first testing facility begins inspecting the medicine. The testing site, EKG Labs, passed final inspections in late September and quickly began testing cannabis for BeLeaf Medical in Earth City. BeLeaf was the first cultivation site approved by the state, and co-founder John Curtis said it expects to receive the results from the first round of testing soon.
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New Mexico: A top New Mexico lawmaker said on Wednesday that the legislature will again attempt to advance marijuana legalization next session—and while the state is far from the first out of the gate in ending prohibition, it will have the benefit of drawing lessons from other jurisdictions that have already enacted the policy change.
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Pennsylvania: Gov. Tom Wolf is urging legislators to legalize the adult-use of marijuana. Pennsylvania officials say the legalization of adult-use cannabis will provide a new revenue stream to direct toward economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, enabling additional funding for grants for small businesses.
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Recreational:

Illinois: Marijuana purchasers have spent more than a half-billion dollars on recreational marijuana products at Illinois dispensaries since the start of the year, according to data from state agencies. Last month, adult-use cannabis sales in Illinois set a record for a seventh consecutive month, as the state collected more than $20 million in taxes from less than $68 million worth of cannabis products sold.
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Maine: Voters approved legal recreational use of weed in November, 2016. Sales began Friday. Sales of marijuana for recreational use began Friday in the state, one of 11 that have made it legal for adults, 21 and older, to possess small amounts for non-medical purposes. Washington D.C. has also legalized the recreational use of weed.
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Michigan: On-demand delivery is available in Detroit, Ann Arbor and the surrounding areas starting Thursday, with plans to eventually expand to cities such as Grand Rapids and Battle Creek. Recreational marijuana customers have been able to place orders for scheduled deliveries from several marijuana shops, but Lantern is one of the first to offer delivery in real time.
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Vermont: Gov. Phil Scott (R) on Wednesday announced he’ll allow a marijuana sales legalization bill passed by the legislature to take effect. Vermont previously legalized marijuana possession and growing. The latest bill allows and builds a commercialized, tax-and-regulate system, similar to other legalization states’ processes. The legislation is set to take effect this month, but state regulators will have until October 2022 to start issuing licenses for retailers — meaning legal sales could still be as much as two years away.
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