Author: News Room

A House committee in Alaska has advanced a bill that would create a state task force to study how to license and regulate psychedelic-assisted therapy—a plan supporters say will help prepare the state for federal approval of substances such as MDMA and psilocybin. At a hearing Tuesday, members of the House Military and Veterans Affairs Committee agreed to advance the measure with individual recommendations. If it becomes law, the proposal, HB 228, would not itself change the legal status of any drugs. Rather, it would create a legislative task force that would spend the rest of 2024 studying how to…

The United Nations’s (UN) drug control body is reiterating that it considers legalizing marijuana for non-medical or scientific purposes a violation of international treaties, though it also said it appreciates that Germany’s government scaled back its cannabis plan ahead of a recent vote. The global narcotics agency is also taking note of the psychedelics policy reform movement in U.S. states. This is mostly par for the course for the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB), which has routinely criticized countries for allowing the enactment of cannabis legalization due to their obligations under various Single Convention treaties going back to 1961. But…

One of the first things I did after arriving in Bangkok was purchase a pack of Marlboros from 7-Eleven, which in Southeast Asia sells microwavable curry and instant noodles instead of slushies and hot dogs. I had made a small effort at quitting during the winter, but after the 30-hour journey I felt like I deserved a cigarette. I planned on smoking only one and giving the rest away, but unsurprisingly ended up finishing the entire pack. Then one pack became two packs, and so on and so on. Two months later, I’m too embarrassed to keep count. Hiding from…

Hawaii’s Senate has passed legislation to legalize and regulate adult-use marijuana in the state, sending the proposal next to the House of Representatives. The legislation, SB 3335, would allow adults 21 and older to possess up to an ounce of marijuana and up to five grams of cannabis concentrates and would establish a framework for licensed, regulated sales. Senators voted 19-6 to approve the legalization bill on Tuesday, advancing a version with amendments made in committee last week. The Senate also passed a separate cannabis decriminalization bill, SB 2487, on a 24–1 vote, with only Sen. Kurt Fevella (R) opposed.…

As lawmakers in Virginia wait to see how Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) will greet a retail marijuana sales bill sent to him last week, the legislature has passed separate legislation to provide relief for people convicted of past cannabis crimes, mandating that individuals with certain offenses automatically receive resentencing hearings and have their punishments adjusted. The House of Delegates gave final approval to the bill, SB 696, on a 52–43 vote on Monday. The Senate passed the measure 20–19 last month. Should the legislation become law, many criminal cases would need to be resentenced by the end of the year.…

A Missouri House committee has unanimously approved a bill to legalize the medical use of psilocybin by military veterans and fund studies exploring the therapeutic potential of the psychedelic. The House Veterans Committee passed the legislation from Rep. Aaron McMullen (R) on Tuesday, with amendments to align it with a Senate companion version that moved through a panel in that chamber last week. The revised bill text of the House measure—which received an initial committee hearing last month—hasn’t been published yet, but the Senate version as recently amended would allow military veterans who are at least 21 and are diagnosed with…

A Massachusetts workforce development program that receives federal funding said it is restricted from using those resources to aid the state-legal marijuana industry due to ongoing prohibition, a new guidance memo says. It can, however, use the money to provide services to the hemp industry, which is federally legal. In a memo sent to MassHire leaders and staff last month, Diane Hurley, the acting director of the the agency’s Department of Career Services, said that despite state-level legalization of cannabis in Massachusetts, U.S. law still prevents federal Workplace Opportunity and Investment Act (WOIA) funds from being used “to directly or…

Two Republican senators are asking federal, state and local officials what steps they are taking to enforce marijuana prohibition as an Indian tribe prepares to launch recreational cannabis sales on its lands within North Carolina on April 20. On Friday, Sens. Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Ted Budd (R-NC) sent a letter with 19 questions about their concerns regarding the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (ECBI) marijuana plan to the U.S. attorney general, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Department of Interior (DOI), Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), National Indian Gaming Commission and various North Carolina state and local law enforcement agencies. “As…

People who use marijuana take more walks on average compared to non-users and e-cigarette users, according to the findings of a new study that “challenge the stereotype” of cannabis consumers being less active. The study, published in the journal Preventive Medicine Reports late last month, also found that marijuana consumers are no less likely to engage in basic exercise and strength training compared to non-users. Researchers at the University of Texas at Dallas and Ohio University carried out the study, which was based on data on 2,591 adults who participated in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health…

Many cannabis advocates and stakeholders were quick to cheer news that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) will be stepping down from his leadership post later this year. But while it might seem like a positive development for the marijuana movement at first glance, a look at the records of his potential GOP replacements signals that reform efforts will likely continue to face resistance from the party’s leadership. McConnell, the longest-serving Senate leader in history, has earned a reputation as a vociferously anti-marijuana member—despite his work championing the legalization of hemp under the 2018 Farm Bill. He’s firmly opposed even…