Author: News Room

Lawmakers in Virginia have given final approval to legislation to prevent the state from using marijuana alone as evidence of child abuse or neglect. The change is meant to protect parents and guardians from discrimination around cannabis use and possession, which the commonwealth legalized in 2021. On Monday the Senate signed off on SB 115, which the House passed 54–45 last week. An identical measure, HB 833, has also been approved by both chambers. The legislation now goes to Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R), who can sign the bill into law, veto it, suggest amendments or allow it to take effect without…

Eight in ten Americans now live in a county with at least one marijuana dispensary, according to a new report from the Pew Research Center. The analysis also shows that high concentrations of retailers often “cluster” near borders abutting other states that have “less permissive cannabis laws”—indicating that there’s a large market of people who live in still-criminalized jurisdictions who cross state lines to purchase regulated products. With cannabis still federally illegal, the report underscores the glaring policy disconnect as the number of states that have enacted legalization continues to grow. Using data from the market research firm SafeGraph and…

I know it’s late but how often do you get to drop on a day that occurs only every couple of years? I’ll tell you right now: not often. So here we are. It feels like it has been a far busier Q1 than usual. I’ve been to events up and down the state, and brands everywhere are pulling out all the tricks they’ve got to be seen and smoked out here. We’ve had professional conferences, pizza parties, club nights… I even went to the desert! I did more drugs at home than I did out there but the point…

The Arizona Senate has passed a bipartisan bill to legalize psilocybin service centers where people could receive the psychedelic in a medically supervised setting. Senators approved the legislation from Sen. T. J. Shope (R) in a 24-4 vote on Thursday, sending it to the House of Representatives for consideration. The floor vote came after the measure cleared the Rules Committee and Health and Human Services Committee. 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…

The white ash conversation has been positively insufferable. Heady bois and cannabis connoisseurs from coast to coast have been posting videos of their ash on Instagram for what feels like years now, indicating that they’re smoking top shelf product solely based on the color of the ash. As much as I hate to disappoint, not only is white ash not an accurate metric of quality, it can be easily faked, gamed, cheated, duped and bamboozled using particular cultivation techniques, smoking methods, and as shown by recent court documents: adding small amounts of chalk to the rolling paper. Recently unsealed documents…

A Democratic senator has announced that she’s joined the list of bipartisan cosponsors of a marijuana banking bill, stressing the need for the reform amid a spate of robberies targeting state-licensed cannabis businesses in her state. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) signed on as a cosponsor of the Secure and Fair Enforcement Regulation (SAFER) Banking Act on Tuesday, becoming the 35th member of the chamber to add their name to the legislation in addition to its lead sponsor. “Last year there were more than 50 robbery attempts at marijuana dispensaries in the State of Washington,” the senator said. A report from…

Denver’s government is forming a work group to explore local regulations under a statewide psychedelics legalization law that’s now being actively implemented in Colorado. The Denver Department of Excise and Licenses announced on Thursday that it is creating the Natural Medicine Work Group following voter-approval of a historic psychedelic reform initiative at the ballot in 2022. Denver, which became the first city in the U.S. to decriminalize psilocybin in 2019, is now seeking “community members and stakeholders with expertise in natural medicine, public health, public health, youth advocacy, social justice and tribal and indigenous interests” to join the work group,…

Former U.S. Rep. Ed Perlmutter (D-CO) didn’t waste much time after retiring from Congress to revive his push for a bipartisan marijuana banking bill he championed for a decade—this time from the private sector, as a policy advisor now lobbying for the reform on behalf of a national cannabis group. Just over a year after his congressional retirement, Perlmutter is getting back to work on the issue, taking the National Cannabis Roundtable (NCR) as a client with the goal of helping to advance the Secure and Fair Enforcement Regulation (SAFER) Banking Act, while also advocating for federal marijuana scheduling reform.…

*This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Bringing together reggae, rap, hip-hop, and a little bit of ska is Cali Vibes Music Festival, held every Valentine’s Day weekend on the Downtown Long Beach Waterfront. The GoldenVoice-run soiree has cherry picked the most significant cultural phenoms of Cali Reggae and neatly packed the biggest names, a few OG’s, a headlining weed sponsor and cannabis village, as well as a hidden tattoo speakeasy into a one-stop shop for stoners everywhere. Cali Vibes is more than a music festival, it’s a living, breathing testament to everything and everyone that’s influenced the…

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is “actively” exploring a potential regulatory framework for CBD, with plans to prioritize the issue in the next year, a top official says. Meanwhile, the agency is also investigating issues related to kratom. FDA Deputy Commissioner for Policy, Legislation, and International Affairs Kimberlee Trzeciak discussed the agency’s cannabis and kratom interests during a webinar hosted by the Alliance for a Strong FDA this month. Asked about issues that are “top of mind” for the agency in 2024 and where officials hope to engage with Congress, Trzeciak said that later this year or next year…