Author: News Room

Teen use of delta-8 THC is higher in states where marijuana is illegal, according to a new study published on Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). When it comes to adolescent consumption of cannabis itself, “there were no differences in marijuana use by state-level cannabis policies,” the researchers concluded, contrary to legalization opponents’ oft-repeated claim that the reform will lead to increased teen use. Overall, just over eleven percent of high-school seniors self-reported using cannabis products containing delta-8 THC in the past year, the study found. Use of the largely unregulated psychoactive cannabinoid “is appreciable among…

Two bipartisan members of Congress say they are “deeply troubled” with the “unacceptable” lack of progress in implementing a law signed by President Joe Biden that’s meant to streamline marijuana research. In a letter sent to the heads of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) on Tuesday, Reps. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) and Andy Harris (R-MD) demanded answers about how cannabis research is being facilitated under the Medical Marijuana and Cannabidiol Research Expansion Act that Biden signed into law in December 2022. The congressmen, who hold diametrically opposing views on broader cannabis policy…

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has published a new “Hemp Research Needs Roadmap” and announced a $10 million investment in studies on the crop through Oregon State University. The department is also proposing to develop a public-private consortium focused on streamlining hemp research. The 19-page hemp report, USDA said an a press release, “reflects stakeholder input in identifying the hemp industry’s greatest research needs,” which it divides into four areas: Breeding and Genetics, Best Practices for Production, Biomanufacturing for End Uses and Transparency and Consistency. “These priority research areas cut across the entire hemp supply chain and are vital…

At a New Orleans City Council hearing on Monday about the sorry state of the city’s police headquarters—which faces issues with plumbing, mold and infestations, among other problems—Police Department Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick that rodents are now munching on drugs in the department’s evidence room—and ostensibly getting high. “The rats are eating our marijuana,” Kirkpatrick told the council’s Criminal Justice Committee at a hearing. “They’re all high.” Kirkpatrick’s mention of stoned rats, first reported by NOLA.com, was among a laundry list of housekeeping items she flagged for city leaders. “It’s not just at police headquarters,” she said. “It is all the…

An Arizona House panel has approved a Senate-passed bill to legalize psilocybin service centers where people could receive the psychedelic in a medically supervised setting. The House Health & Human Services Committee advanced the legislation from from Sen. T. J. Shope (R) in an 8-2 vote on Monday, a move that comes less than two weeks after the measure cleared the full Senate. If enacted into law, the Department of Human Services (DHS) would be authorized to license psilocybin-assisted therapy centers in the state, where trained facilitators could administer the psychedelic. The legislation would significantly expand on Arizona’s existing research-focused…

The Republican governor of New Hampshire has reaffirmed that he’d sign a bill to legalize marijuana, despite his personal reservations about the policy change, as long as it contained provisions including state control over the market. Gov. Chris Sununu (R) said during an interview with WMUR that while there may be “some flexibility” with respect to part of his proposal that would ban cannabis businesses from lobbying the legislature, he remains committed to having a state-run model that he says would minimize potential harms. “I don’t love the idea of legalizing cannabis here. I really don’t,” he said. “But knowing…

The House sponsor of legislation in Virginia that aimed to protect the parental rights of lawful cannabis consumers is criticizing Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s decision last week to veto the bill. If enacted, HB 833 would have prevented the state from using marijuana alone as evidence of child abuse or neglect and, further, established that drug testing in child custody and visitation matters “shall exclude testing for any substance permitted for lawful use by an adult” under the state’s alcohol, cannabis and drug laws. Youngkin vetoed the bill on Friday, writing in a message that “the proposed legislation, aiming to address a…

Lawmakers in Hawaii’s House of Representatives are set to take up a Senate-passed bill to legalize and regulate adult-use marijuana this week. The chair of one committee slated to consider the measure is optimistic about its chances of being enacted into law, but others—including the House speaker—say the legislature needs to consider the concerns of law enforcement leaders who have criticized the proposal. “We are in a money crunch here at the state legislature,” Rep. Cedric Gates (D), who chairs the House Agriculture and Food Systems Committee, told local TV station KHON. “We need to look at revenue-generating legislation to…

Just days after promoting marijuana reform actions during his State of the Union address, President Joe Biden has released a budget plan that proposes to maintain a controversial provision prohibiting Washington, D.C. from using its local tax dollars to legalize cannabis sales. The Fiscal Year 2025 budget request, sent to Congress on Monday, also contains some good news for marijuana reform supporters, however. It once again proposes to keep in place a longstanding rider preventing the Justice Department from using its funds to interfere in the implementation of state-level medical cannabis programs. The D.C. language is the latest disappointment for…

Delaware officials have released a third package of informal draft rules for the state’s adult-use marijuana market that’s set to launch next year. The Office of the Marijuana Commissioner (OMC) published the proposed regulations on Monday, with new sections related to issues such as cannabis testing, sampling, disposal, variances and fee schedules. For its initial batch of rules last month, the office provided a basic framework for various cannabis business license types and requirements for the application process. That was followed with regulations on tracking, transportation, health standards, packaging and advertising. The office has said it will be regularly releasing…