Author: News Room

A bill about to become law in Florida will likely wipe out much of the state’s $1.8 billion CBD market. The measure, which would ban all products that contain intoxicating hemp compounds and put crippling restrictions on CBD, passed both houses of the Florida state legislature this week. The legislation (HB 1613) would specifically prohibit ingestible or inhalable products that contain delta-8 THC, delta-10 THC, HHC, THCA, THCP and THCV. All of those compounds are made by putting hemp-derived CBD through a synthetic process to produce highly concentrated substances that give users a “high.” The Senate voted unanimously, 39-0, to…

“What’s actually happening is the prohibitionist conversation is happening as a reaction to the irresponsible sale of these drugs.” By David Abbott, Arizona Mirror Arizona legislators introduced more than a dozen bills focused on amending marijuana laws this year, but just five are left standing as lawmakers have passed the midpoint of their annual session. Remaining bills run the gamut from advertising restrictions to addressing the failures of the social equity program to regulating hemp production. Hemp battle continues In addition to its industrial use for products like rope and fabric, hemp is also a source for cannabinoids, including delta-8…

For the first time in history, the president of the United States used part of his State of the Union address to promote marijuana reform, touting the mass pardons he’s issued, affirming his position that nobody should be incarcerated over possession and noting the review into cannabis’s scheduling status that he initiated, according to the tex of the speech as prepared for delivery. In his last SOTU ahead of his fight for reelection this year, President Joe Biden noted his move “directing my Cabinet to review the federal classification of marijuana.” In an apparent reference to his mass cannabis pardon…

Maryland lawmakers in a House committee took testimony on Wednesday about a measure that would protect the gun rights of medical marijuana patients under state law. If enacted, the one-paragraph measure, HB 296, sponsored by Del. Robin L. Grammer Jr. (R), would protect the rights of registered medical marijuana patients to buy, own and carry firearms under Maryland law, even people who use cannabis are still restricted from doing so under federal statute. Grammer and others introduced similar legislation last session. Specifically, the bill says that “a person may not be denied the right to purchase, own, possess, or carry…

A GOP congressman is applauding the House passage of an appropriations package that includes report language urging the Justice Department and other agencies to study state regulatory frameworks for marijuana in anticipation of federal legalization. Rep. Dave Joyce (R-OH), co-chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, said on Thursday that, with “nearly every state adopting its own set of cannabis reforms, it is time for the federal government to respect the will of our voters and begin a much-needed conversation on what post-cannabis prohibition America looks like.” He pointed specifically to a section of the House-passed Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related…

“As those great philosophers Tommy Chong and Cheech Marin would say, ‘It’s up in smoke.’” By Graham Moomaw, Virginia Mercury Hopes that Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) might sign a bill legalizing retail sales of marijuana in Virginia faded fast this week as Democrats blocked one of the governor’s top priorities: the plan to bring a professional sports arena to Northern Virginia. As recently as Wednesday, according to multiple Capitol sources, the cannabis bill was being raised in closed-door budget talks with the governor as one of several Democratic priorities that could conceivably have been part of a package deal with…

Promising results from a clinical trial of the LSD-like substance MM120 have persuaded the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to award it “breakthrough therapy” status as a treatment for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). The drugmaker behind MM120—Mind Medicine Inc., or MindMed—said in a press release Thursday that it plans to hold an end-of-Phase 2 meeting with FDA in the first half of 2024 and begin a Phase 3 clinical trial in the second half of the year. Results of the latest round of study showed that a single oral dose of MM120 (lysergide d-tartrate) led to “clinically and statistically significant”…

During joint U.S. House and Senate committee meetings this week, veterans service organizations (VSOs) pressed members of Congress to more urgently pursue the potential benefits of psychedelic-assisted therapy and medical marijuana. The requests from groups like the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, Disabled American Veterans and the Wounded Warrior Project come on the heels of organizations at last year’s set of annual VSO hearings criticizing the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for “dragging their feet” on medical marijuana research. “Whether it’s cannabis or psychedelics,” Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA)…

“The Legislature’s lawmaking authority is not subject to the governor’s whims, invented loopholes, or gamesmanship.  Despite the Governor’s repeated attempts to avoid responsibility, today’s order requires that he play by the same constitutional rules as everybody else.” By Blair Miller and Keila Szpaller, Daily Montanan The Montana Legislature needs an opportunity—“without further delay”—to override Gov. Greg Gianforte’s (R) veto of a 2023 bill that redistributed marijuana funds, a judge said Tuesday in response to the governor’s request to stop the court’s earlier order. Lewis and Clark District Court Judge Mike Menahan also said Gianforte and the secretary of state have…

“The Florida Legislature is well on its way to eliminating several beneficial hemp and CBD products, ending Florida’s hemp industry as we know it.” By Mitch Perry, Florida Phoenix The Florida Legislature has approved a bill to regulate hemp-derived products in the state and eliminate delta-8 THC, which is banned in 17 states and severely restricted in seven more—though it is a popular item sold in retail establishments and people have used it for chronic illnesses. Both chambers approved the legislation on Wednesday. The Florida Senate passed the measure (SB 1698), sponsored by Polk County Republican Colleen Burton, unanimously, 39-0. That…